There and Back Again Maybe
by the BugSlayer
Summary: Everyone knows the tale of Bilbo Baggins and the Quest for Erebor. But what if Gandalf decided that respectable Mr. Baggins wasn't the best hobbit for the job? What if a different 'burglar' had been chosen for the position? (Thorin x OC) ... I promise I'm better at writing stories than I am at writing summaries! I suck at summaries...
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, BugSlayer here, and welcome to what I hope to be a most amusing tale. I'm trying this idea out, though I am, in truth, rather nervous about it. But, If people seem to like it, I'll give it a try.**

**Let it be known that I do not own the Hobbit and therefore am not responsible for the rights and genius of this story! **

**The story will be a mix of the movie and the book, hopefully leaning more towards the movie, but you never know!**

**It's a little slow at the beginning, but bear through it! Please enjoy!**

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><p>In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell. Though there was, unmistakably, an implacable odor that hung in the air of the little home. And though Gandalf, even after all the years of visits, could never quite place it, he claimed that it was the smell of accumulated bread, baked and stolen greedily by the family of mice inhabiting it.<p>

Nor was it a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat. Though the mice did try their hardest to make it so.

It was a hobbit hole. And that means, comfort.

All hobbit holes pride themselves on being the definition of comfort, but this hole was undoubtedly so. Perhaps it was the warm hearth that always seemed to be crackling merrily save for the dead of night when the house's lone inhabitant was snoring quietly in one of the back rooms.

Or perhaps the homey feel came from the severe lack of points. All hobbits on one level or another, disliked points to some degree, so much so that even their slightly pointed ears deemed it worth the effort to be the unpointiest pointy ears imaginable. Hobbits, or at least their ancestors, disliked points so much, they went through the excruciating work of fashioning themselves perfectly round little doors for their homes under the ground. And then, of course, painting them a variety of bright, earthly colors so as to seem like flowers peeping out of the rolling hills they nestled themselves into.

The perfectly round door of this particular hobbit was painted a beautiful shade of maroon with a round pewter doorknob perfectly in the center. Most doorknobs were in the center, for if you have a perfectly round door, the center is the only place that makes sense to put it!

If one were to walk up the few, slightly rounded wooden steps and turn the recently polished pewter doorknob. They would most likely stop for a moment and realize in surprise that the door was unlocked; the door was often unlocked, for this hobbit was generally found of visitors. One would then pause for a moment to wonder why they immediately opened the door, instead of knocking, even when they expected the door to be locked. But this thought is quickly brushed aside as the round maroon door would swing inwards, revealing a, more or less, oval shaped hallway, with wooden beams supporting the earth above it, and a slightly off white colored plaster stretching between the oaken beams.

The floor, recently cleaned save for the little spot kept for the shoes of any none hobbit visitors, was made of smooth wooden planks laid straight onto the earth beneath them so that they didn't make the hollow creaking sound often found with wooden floors. One would also find a good deal of furniture. Sturdy, homey pieces that one could easily sink into without having to worry about where their backside had been earlier that day.

And the most charming part of this little abode was the lack of stairs. All the parlors and bedrooms, closets and kitchens, where all on one floor that stretched in a seemingly endless manner farther into the hill. Of course, it didn't go back very far, for this was one of the smaller homes in the shire, seemingly nothing in comparison to the most envied Bag End at the top of the hill.

This home did not have a name at first, and so the current occupant, in possible spite, or perhaps just for lake of ideas, chose to name the home residing behind the round maroon door Purse Close. Of course, this did not sound half as good as the name which inspired it, but it made the little hobbit laugh whenever she thought of it, so she saw no reason to change it.

Unfortunately, our story takes place very little in this humble dwelling, but that is where it starts and that is where it ends. For this is the story of There and Back Again.

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You didn't really think the whole first chapter would go by without meeting the heroine of this charming little tale, did you? No. Unfortunately, you are not so lucky.

The owner of this quaint little hobbit hole is none other than Brandybuck. One of the few Brandybucks this side of the water, and very proud of it. But, although proud she may be, this Brandybuck preferred to go by the name of Emi, which was short for Emilie.

And, now that you know her name, you undoubtedly are wondering just who exactly belongs to it. And I will tell you, since I am so obliged to do so.

Emilie Brandybuck was a relatively respected hobbit, being more than careful to keep all of her mundane adventures hidden from the ever-watchful eyes of her neighbors. Most did not know her when she was a wee lass, running around with the other hobbit boys in nothing more than a pair of trousers and a dirtied cotton shirt. And as she grew older, they never saw her pouring over old tomes or fighting through underbrush to get at the sweetest berries where even the birds could not get to them. Of course, even these activities dwindled with age, as she soon found content in the simple things of life: her hearth, her bread, the flowers in spring and the leaves in autumn.

And she was old. Not too far into her years, but just old enough to be officially labeled an old spinstress. Just this past week in fact. Her good friend Hamfast had come knocking on her door as the first light of day began peeking over Bag End. The begruntled Emi, annoyed at her rude and much too early awakening had clambered from her bed, and just had enough wits about her to grab her bath robe and throw it on before she opened the door. She was then greeted by a startling loud 'Happy Birthday you old spinstress' and Hamfast walked by her wide-eyed daze for first breakfast.

No one in the Shire was ever quite sure why she never married or courted any of the young hobbit men. It was unceasingly odd considering that, for hobbit standards, Emi was something of a beauty, with her long curly dark brown hair and her healthy complexion. And all the hobbit lads agreed that it was a shame that a fine lady such as herself continued to live out her years alone. But on further investigation from their friends, each of the lads would eventually admit that there was something about the charming hobbit lass that unnerved them. Maybe it was the fact that you would hear very unhobbit like songs wafting through her house as she baked her bread. Perhaps it was the smile that always seemed to spring to her face so easily, yet so incompletely. Whatever the reason, her songs or her smile, all the hobbits in the shire seemed to agree that she was a dear friend, but never anything more than that.

And Emi seemed completely fine with this mutual distance, for the simple hobbit liked her space, though always there to lend an ear or a hearth for awhile.

That's the way it went. And Emilie Brandybuck very much liked it that way. She was content with her simple, private life. Until that one-day came for which she would forever curse and bless a meddlesome wizard for.

That day, like so many others, Emi was found sitting on a stump she had rolled years ago to her front yard for the very purpose of sitting upon it as she blew smoke rings into the clear blue sky. Much to the distaste of many lady hobbits.

Emi let out a small sigh of content as she listened to the birds chirp around her. That was, until her last smoke ring decided to turn itself into a butterfly and flit it's way right into her nose. The hobbit lady let out a small cough of surprise, her eyes flying open at the sudden intake of pipe smoke. No sooner had her eyes opened, than she noticed the tall grey clad figure standing in front of her, his odd pointed hat blocking the warm sun from her face.

The two continued to stare at each other for a good long while, Emi taking in the tall man's worn, traveled look and long grey beard, and the other simply… staring.

"Morning." Emi smiled hesitantly, breaking the silence most abruptly. The tall man raised one bushy eyebrow, but other than that did nothing. Emi let a small frown slip across her features. Perhaps the old man was hard of hearing? "Good Morning!" She said a little louder, forcing a smile once again.

"What do you mean? Good morning?" the tall man snapped abruptly, startling Emi most severely. "Do you mean to wish me a good morning? Or do you mean to say that this is a good morning whether I like it or not? Or perhaps you mean to say that you feel good this morning? Or are you simply stating that this is a morning to be good on?" Emi, quite taken aback, stuttered slightly, before furrowing her eyebrows at the old man.

"Sorry?" She asked, trying to regain her composure as her smile once again slid from her face. The man seemed to let out a slow annoyed sigh through his nose. "… Well… It is rather a good morning, and I do feel rather good this morning, and I can't really see a better morning to be good on… And I do suppose that I would wish you to have a good morning too…" she ceased rambling as she noticed the disapproving look that remained on the man's face. "Is… is there something I can help you with?" Emi asked, licking her lips nervously.

"That remains to be seen." The old man muttered, more to himself than to her. Emi shifted uncomfortably under the intense gaze, slipping the end of her pipe back between her teeth and turning away slightly, wishing the man would leave her alone, or at least step off to the side and stop blocking the view. She had just gotten her mind around to ignore the queer stranger when he spoke up again. "I am looking for someone to share in an adventure."

Emi looked up at the wizard for a long moment. Before allowing herself a small chuckle. "I must admit," she began "It's been awhile since I met someone of your age who still had a knack for humor! Here, my good man, have a seat and tell me another of your jokes. Do you have a pipe about you?" She asked, shifting over slightly to make room for the much larger person.

"I have no time to blow smoke rings this morning." The man snapped impatiently. "I am looking for someone to share in an adventure I am arranging, and I am having a very hard time doing so."

"And I am not surprised!" Emi replied quickly. "No offense, my good man. But if you came looking for adventurers you are in entirely the wrong place." The man raised an eyebrow at her again, and she found herself growing more and more uncomfortable as she talked. "No one around here would have any use for adventures, I should think. Nasty, disturbing, wet things…" She said, standing up and walking to the foot of her porch stairs. "Make you late for dinner!" The hobbit shook her long brown locks disapprovingly. "Don't know what anyone sees in them." Thinking the matter closed, Emi picked up her half full watering can and finished sprinkling the potted plants outside her house, which is what she had been doing before the smoke rings had called her attentions. Emi only grew more agitated however, as the man continued to stare at her as she finished this most mundane task. She risked a glance back at the old man before giving him another cheery "Good Morning!" And turning to go inside.

"To think," Emi heard the man say to her retreating back "that I should live to be 'Good Morninged' by Hoodle Took's granddaughter as if I were selling buttons at the door!" Emi froze at these words and turned back around to the old man, puzzled.

"… Do I know you?" She asked him, slightly accusatory in manner.

"Well, you know my name." the old man told her, taking a few steps over to her. "Though you do not seem to remember that I belong to it." Now it was Emi's turn to raise an eyebrow. Why must this old fool talk in riddles? The man shifted his intricate walking stick over to his other hand and gazed at the hobbit lass. "I am Gandalf." The man announced. "And Gandalf means… well, me!" He gestured to his person. Emi looked at him for a second, before looking down in thought.

"Gandalf… Gandalf… doesn't ring a-" then her eyes widened with recognition and she looked up at the old man who smirked in slight satisfaction. "Not _the_ Gandalf? The wandering wizard who made such _excellent_ fireworks?" She grinned broadly. "Old Took used to have them on midsummer's eve! Amazing!" the old man's smirk fell away and he let out a long sigh.

"Well, I'm pleased to know you remember something of me, even if it is my fireworks…" he grumbled the last part to himself, taking mental note to try and make himself more memorable.

"I beg your pardon," Emi began, feeling she should again attempt conversation upon learning the who the man was. "But I had no idea you were still in business!"

"And where else would I be?" Gandalf snapped slightly. Emi let a nervous cough and just gestured with her arms somewhat vaguely. He let out another sigh. "For the sake of my adventure and your poor grandfather Took, I will give you what you asked for."

"I beg your pardon, but I haven't asked for anything." Emi frowned. This man confused her greatly.

"Oh but you have!" Gandalf replied. "Twice now, in fact."

"I have?" Emi squeaked slightly.

"You asked for my pardon." Gandalf explained. "And I will give it to you. I'll go a step further in fact and go so far as to send you on this adventure. Yes. It will be very good for you, and most amusing for me!"

Emi frowned. "N-no… no thank you." She shook her head as she backed up to her door. "No adventures. Not here. Not today, thank you." The little creature backed up into the door and opened it quickly. "Perhaps try… over the hill. Or across the waters?" The wizard continued to stare at her in amusement. "… Good Morning!" And she slammed the door in between them. Emi breathed heavily in the safety of her own home. Recovering her wits enough to lock the door before creeping over to the window to see if the fellow had gone yet. There was no one. Then Emi let a gasp of surprise as a large I appeared right on the other side of the window. The poor lass stumbled backwards in alarm, tripping over a stool in the process. The hobbit cursed her large feet under her breath, picking a stray book off of her head and moving quickly to look out a different window.

Emi could not help but heave a sigh of relief to see the grey hat making it's way down the path from which it had come, the old man humming to himself pleasantly as he walked. Emi sat back in a chair, running a hand through her scalp in an attempt to relieve some stress. It didn't help much. Of course, she would probably have never been able to calm herself had she known what events would indeed come as a result from the undeniably odd encounter.

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><p><strong>Well? What did you think?<strong>

**I'll tell you now that Emi will be much different from Mr. Bilbo Baggins later on. However, any poor hobbit that has to deal with Gandalf at first is very out of their comfort zone, and there are only so many ways someone can respond to the Wandering Wizard when he gets like that.**

**Please please please please please review! I really don't like begging. I hate it in fact... you know what? I don't really care right now. I'm reallllly desperate for some feedback right now! I'm very unsure about this story idea and if you want to read it, tell me! And I will write it!**

**Thank you all for your time! And I hope you'll take a few seconds more to type me a little something in the white box below ;)**

**- The BugSlayer**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! I got some good reviews on my first chapter, so here is the second one! Chapter 2 is dedicated to BrightFeatherNYSI and The souless ones. Thanks you two for the reviews!**

**So without further ado... ^-^**

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><p>Although the incident with the wizard earlier that week was beyond odd, Emilie Brandybuck was a hobbit. And hobbits are simple folk. And the meeting was soon forgotten. Though the poor woman might have been a little jumpy after the days that followed.<p>

It had been a clear night when Emi's life was once again interrupted from it's usual routine. She had tried to go to sleep early that night, but for some reason, found this an impossible task. So, she did whatever she would do when she could not sleep. She slipped on her bathrobe, padded into her kitchen, and began baking bread. Emi had just finished a batch of her favorite butter rolls and had set them on a rack to cool. The hobbit lass poured herself a tall glass of milk, grabbed a roll, and sat down at her simple little table that she ate at when she was alone. Of course, like any good hobbit, she had a larger table for company. But it felt so empty when there was only her to occupy it. So she sat at the smaller one and tucked in. Of course, no sooner had she raised the roll to her mouth to take a warm bite, than a ringing came at her door.

She frowned. Who could possibly be out at this hour? Obviously no one respectable. And so, Emi, tying her bathrobe around her securely, left her quickly cooling roll and went to the door.

Upon opening the maroon wood, the hobbit found herself face to face with a fierce looking man. He had a thick beard and tattoos up and down his muscular arms. Strapped to his back were to impressively large axes that made Emi quiver slightly at the sight. After looking up and down the brutish man, Emi found his face again and raised an eyebrow.

"Dwalin." The man… or more accurately, dwarf grunted. "At your service." With that he bowed before straightening up again to glare slightly at the small creature in front of him.

"Um!" was all Emi was able to squeak out. But after several moments of silence, Emi regained her composure.

"Emilie Brandybuck… at yours?" she bowed slightly in an awkward manner. The dwarf let out a small snort of annoyance and strode passed her into the interior of Purse Close. "Have we…" Emi squeaked again, falling silent for a moment as the dwarf turned back to look at her. The hobbit gave a little cough and started again. "Have we met before?" she asked.

"No." the dwarf snorted. Emi frowned as the dwarf turned away again and began looking around the rooms. She had never had a dwarf visit her before… "Which way Lass? Is it down here?"

"Is what?" Emi asked looking around in surprise to see the dwarf gone. "Where?"

"Supper." The dwarf said, walking back into the room to dump his pack and axes in the place meant for shoes. "He said there'd be food, and lots of it." Dwalin replied looking around hungrily.

"He… said?" Emi frowned before remembering the hungry guest standing before her. "Oh, yes! There's lots of food!" Emi smiled, leading the dwarf to her freshly baked butter rolls. She glanced longingly between the golden wheat and then distastefully at the dwarf behind her. "Please, help yourself!"

Dwalin did not need to be told twice as he grabbed two more rolls and plopped himself down heavily in the chair Emi had sat only moments ago. Before Emi could do so much as offer a plate, the dwarf had consumed half the rolls and the entire glass of milk. The cowed hobbit sunk down meekly into the little stool in the corner. She stayed there in silence as the dwarf continued to finish off the rest of the rolls. Dwalin gulped down the last drops of milk before slamming the glass down on the table, making Emi jump alarmingly.

"Good this." Dwalin nodded in approval, glancing down at the still vaguely whitish glass. "Anything stronger though?"

"Pardon?" Emi asked in surprise.

"Have you got anything stronger? Ale? Mead?" the dwarf explained impatiently.

"Oh! Um, yes, yes." Emi nodded, slipping off her stool. "Let me get it…" but the hobbit froze halfway out of the room as the ringing of her doorbell sounded again. Emi glanced at the door, then back at Dwalin who was licking crumbs off his fingers. He noticed the hobbit's confused stare and glared at her.

"That'll be the door." He growled. Emi's eyes grew slightly larger if possible and hurried over to the foyer.

"Just one moment and I'll get you that mead!" She promised over her shoulder before opening the door. Again, freezing on the spot. Standing before her was a short elderly man with a snow-white beard that curled up slightly at the ends, which were split into two. He had a kind twinkle in his eyes as he regarded the small woman.

"Balin." He smiled. "At your service." And he too bowed, a little more gracefully than the dwarf before him. Emi's mouth felt dry. She needed a drink of water.

"Good Evening." She managed, smiling ever so slightly.

"Yes." The dwarf nodded, glancing at the star filled sky above him. "Yes it is. Though I think it might rain later." And with that, he stepped past her into the house. "Am I late?" He asked, preparing to hear the worst.

"Late?" Emi could not help but ask. "Why no, seeing as there's nothing to be late for." But her words were lost on the old dwarf as he spied the other dwarf, who hand was reaching into the bottom of Emi's cookie jar.

"Evening brother!" Balin laughed walking over to the taller dwarf.

"By my beard…" Dwalin smirked "You're shorter and wider than last we met."

"Wider, not shorter." Balin corrected. "Sharp enough for the both of us." He winked. Emi watched the two with much concern as the two continued chuckling as they grabbed each other's shoulders. Then, without warning, the two slammed heads with each other resulting in a loud smacking sound. And they continued chuckling again. This quick motion seemed to snap Emi out of her shook and she took a couple of steps forward.

"Pardon me good sirs?" she squeaked to the chuckling dwarves. "But I'm not entirely sure you've come to the right... house…" the two ignored her and instead proceeded to the hobbit's pantry, murmuring something about getting ready for them before something. "You see… I don't really know you…" she continued as the two dwarves began talking about her store of cheese and something about it going blue. "And of course, I wouldn't really mind. I love visitors, I really do." She nodded before watching a perfectly good hunk of cheese fly past her shoulder and roll down the hallway. "But there are certain hours of the night where showing up unannounced is completely unacceptable. I don't mean to be rude. But I had to speak my mind, I'm sorry!" she continued, her voice increasing in pitch until she stopped. She looked at the two dwarves expectantly as they paused to look at her as well. The three stared at one another for a moment before the older dwarf spoke up.

"Apology accepted." He smiled. She frowned. The dwarves turned away from her again. "Ah, fill it up brother! Don't stint." Getting seriously agitated with the dwarves' rudeness, Emi opened her mouth to speak again, not caring about manners and being a proper host anymore. Before another word left her mouth, however, the familiar sound of the doorbell again rang through the hall.

The door was opened this time to find two rather young dwarves staring at her. One had a mane of blonde hair, the other, dark brown. Both had an assortment of weapons with them. Emi gulped.

"Fili." The blonde one smiled.

"And Kili." The darker one glared.

"At your service." They chorused, bowing simultaneously. When they came up, both dwarves were now smiling.

"You must by Mrs. Brondybuck!" Kili grinned.

"Ms." Emi corrected, her face avoid of any emotion other than annoyance.

"Sorry?" the dark haired dwarf asked.

"Ms. Brandybuck." The hobbit repeated.

"Ah…" Kili nodded. "Ms. Brondybuck." He nodded, moving forward to enter the house.

"No!" Emi said, startled. "Sorry, you can't come in. Not today, thank you. On your way!" And she began shutting the door quickly. But one booted foot blocked the maroon door from swinging closed again. Emi huffed in increasing annoyance as Kili's head squeezed through the crack, hand bracing the door open.

"What? Has it been canceled?" the dwarf's eyes went wide.

"No one told us." Fili said, looking at her suspiciously.

"Canceled?" Emi frowned. "Why would anything be canceled?"

"Well, that's a relief!" Kili smiled again before shoving open the door and walking in. Fili looked around for a moment before proceeding to strut through the round door. Emi could do nothing but stare in wonder at their rudeness.

"Careful with these." Fili warned, nodding to the assortment of knives and swords in his hands as he shoved them into Emi's arms. "I just had em sharpened."

"Then don't give them to me!" Emi cried indignantly as the blonde dwarf slipped the strap of a scabbard over her head, causing the sword encased in it to bounce against her side.

"It's nice. This place." Kili said from the other room looking around approvingly. "Did you do it yourself?"

"Uh, no not really! It was like this when I got it!" Emi replied as Fili piled more weapons into her arms. She glanced over briefly at the dark haired dwarf. "THAT is a chair! It is for sitting on, not wiping your boots!" she scolded the stranger, gritting her teeth at the sight of the large clots of mud being left behind as the dwarf scrapped the soles of his boots on it. Then the hulking mass that was Dwalin threw an arm over Kili's shoulder, leading him over to the dining room.

"Fili, Kili, come on, give us a hand." The large dwarf grunted.

"Mister Dwalin." Kili said in awe as he was led away. Emi, still carrying weapons, followed Fili in to the room to see the other three dwarves shoving her cabinet out.

"Let's shove this in the hallway." Balin told the others. "Otherwise we'll never get everyone in."

"Everyone?" Emi's eyes widened. "There better not be any more of you lot coming around here or I'll-" her threat went unfinished however as the doorbell rang once more, for a very long time. "No." Emi shook her head in distress. "Just go away!" She shouted, dropping her armful of weapons in an unceremonious heap in the hallway. "Leave me be! There's far too many dwarves destroying my home already!" she huffed, struggling out of the scabbard as she stomped towards the door. "If this is that clothead Hamfast's idea of a joke…" she growled, grabbing the door knob. "I can only say, that it is in _very_ poor taste!" With that she yanked open the door and nearly got smothered as eight more dwarves tumbled into her home, all writhing on top of each other in an attempt to get up. Emi stumbled back in surprise, tripping over her own feet and landing on her backside. She looked up in surprise to see the smiling face of a grey bearded man bend down and look through the door. Emi's eyes narrowed. "Gandalf."

"Ah! Emilie." Gandalf smiled back. "I trust you've met some of them already?"

"Indeed." She replied dryly.

"Excellent." The wizard nodded, stepping over the writhing mass of dwarves still trying to untangle themselves from each other. "Now my dear, why don't you go change into something a little more suitable. There won't be much need for sleepwear tonight." Emi frowned at the old wizard.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "Gandalf, I don't understand. What are all these dwarves doing in my house?"

"Starving!" a larger ginger haired dwarf replied, springing from the floor and rushing over to the pantry he had just spotted. The rest followed him. Emi's face paled considerably. Gandalf gave a hearty laugh and patted the poor lass on the shoulder.

"All in good time my dear." He smiled. "Now, I think it would be wise if you go change into something more suitable for a lady hobbit with 13 strange men as guests." Emi looked over at Gandalf before looking down her own apparel, which had gotten slightly ruffled from tripping. Emi blushed vaguely before nodding to the wizard and hurrying off to her room, wincing as the sound of dishes and foods and dwarves rolled about her house.

This was going to be a long night.

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><p><strong>Again... Emi is a bit too much like Bilbo in this situation, and I apologize for that. I'll be fixing that in later chapters! I promise!<strong>

**... If I even get that far. Please review if you'd like me to write another chapter! I'd like to, but it's still a decent bit of work, so if no one's going to read it, then I won't bother.**

**Hope you enjoyed it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for all the support guys! Here's the next chapter ^-^ ****Also, I recently re-watched the hobbit, and noticed that in Bag End, Thorin smiles quite a bit! It's hard to notice, but if you look for it, it's there. So if he doesn't seem like just a grumpy old codger in this story, it's because he isn't.**

**query4: Bilbo does exist and will be mentioned, but I doubt he'll be making an appearance in this story.**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>Emi padded back to her parlor, tucking the last bit of her light blue shirt under the waistline of the simple brown skirt she had thrown on over her trousers. She let out a small cry of distress as she came upon the sight of a dozen dwarves pillaging her pantry.<p>

"What are you doing?" She squeaked grabbing a bowl full of apples out of Kili's hands. "No, no, not the turkey! I've been saving that!" She set down the apples in an attempt to save the precious meat, only to have the red bearded dwarf ignore her and continue with it to her dining room. Emi turned around in distress to see the apples had again disappeared. "Excuse me, those are not for eating! No, put that chair back where you found it! Right now!"

"I can't hear you lass!" the old dwarf holding the chair said, pointing at his ear as Emi ushered him back down the hall. The hobbit turned around in frustration and nearly got bowled over by a very large dwarf carrying her entire store of cheese wheels.

"That's four whole wheels!" she sighed, resigning. "Do you at least want a cheese knife? I'm pretty sure the mice have gotten to one of those."

"Cheese knife?" a dwarf in a strange hat said behind her. "He eats it by the block!"

"That's cranberry sauce not jelly!" Emi squeaked seeing the red paste being spread across a loaf of bread. "Will you put that back? That's wine you know!" The hobbit's hands massaged her face in anguish as the dwarves and wizard moved into the dining room and began eating. Emi peeked between stressed hands to see food flying through the air. She turned around to her now empty parlor and closed her eyes. "Why me?" She mumbled into her palms. Silence fell behind her and nothing but the sound of desperate gulps filled the room. After a few moments, several tankards slammed down on the table and several long exaggerated burps filled the halls, accompanied by loud cheers.

A small whimper escaped her lips and she let her head fall against the doorframe next to her.

Soon the dwarves began to get up and began milling around. A gnawing hunger grew in Emi's stomach, but she pushed it away as she moved to intercept her guests once again from destroying her house.

"That's a table cloth, please stop wiping your mouth on it. Get your feet off the table!" She was ignored. "Be bother and confusticate these dwarves!"

"My dear Emilie, whatever seems to be the matter?" Gandalf smiled at her in concern.

"What?" She looked at him angrily. "You ask me what? There are dwarves running about my house! Tearing it apart!"

"Oh, they're quite a merry gathering, once you get used to them." The wizard chuckled.

"Oh, go ahead and laugh!" The hobbit lass squeaked again. "You're not the one who's going to have to clean up after them! Do you know how much work it's going to be to get this place in working order again? They're filthy! Look." She said, leading Gandalf out into the hall. "Look at this. This used to be white!" Emi pointed to the floor, which was covered in food and mud. "I spent five hours cleaning that last week. Five Hours!" She repeated.

"I'm sure they'd be willing to help." Gandalf shrugged slightly.

"I don't _want_ their help! I _want_ them gone!" She hissed. "Why are they even here?"

"Excuse me." An incredibly sweet voice said from next to her. Emi squeezed her eyes tight before turning to look at a young dwarf with a bowl shaped haircut. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but what should I do with my plate?" Both the dwarf and Emi looked down at the plate in his hand.

"Here you go Ori." Fili said, coming up next to them. "Give it to me." Emi's heart almost leapt out of her throat as Fili grabbed the plate and hurled it like a rock over to Kili at the other end of the hall. Kili grabbed it easily before tossing it quickly into the next room, turning back just in time to catch Fili's own plate. Gandalf, dodging each plate as it came.

"Don't you dare!" Emi shouted. "That's the only good set of dishes I own!" The frazzled woman rushed into the dining room to see three of the dwarves playing some sort of rhythm game with her knives. "Stop that right now! You'll blunt them that way!"

"Ohhh did you hear that lads?" the hat wearing one teased. "She says we'll blunt the knives!" Kili's voice sounded from the hallway.

"_Blunt the Knives bend the forks_"

"_Smash the bottles and burn the corks_," Fili continued.

"_Chip the glasses and crack the Plates,_" others started joining in.

"_That's what Emi Brandy hates!_" Emi looked around in shock and horror as her dishes and silverware began to get tossed around the rooms, from one dwarf to another.

"_Cut the cloth, tread on the fat,_

_Leave the bones on the bedroom mat!_

_Poor the milk on the pantry floor,_

_Splash the wine on every door!_

_Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl,_

_Pound em up with a thumping pole!_

_When you're finished, if they are whole,_

_Send them down the hall to roll!_"

One of the dwarves whipped out his flute and began playing a little tune on it, while dishes continued to fly around him.

"_That's what Emi Brandy hates!_"

"It's Brandy_buck_." Emi corrected under her breathe as she pushed her way into the dining room. But her eyes widened in shock to see all of her dishes piled, neat and clean on the table in front of her. The dwarves laughed around her, obviously enjoying the look of astonishment that appeared on her.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

All fell silent, heads, turning towards the door, smiles gone.

Gandalf broke the still, his deep voice rumbling, forebodingly. "He is here." In silence, the dwarves filed over to the door, Gandalf at the head. Emi glanced over shoulders; slightly annoyed that Gandalf chose to open the door, to _her_ home. But she quickly dismissed the thought. The hobbit tried her best to squeeze through the others to see just who this new arrival was.

The wizard opened the door to reveal, big surprise, another dwarf. But, something in Emi, told her that this dwarf was not like any of the others. He had a head of long black hair, with strands of grey through out and braids running down either side of his face. A dark green cloak draped over his broad shoulders, partially concealing dwarven armor and a fur lined coat. His eyes, which turned to look at Gandalf, were a stormy blue color. And Emi could not help but notice the faint traces of relief in them as the new dwarf smiled ever so slightly.

"Gandalf." He said, walking in with a sense of regalness… maybe honor? "I thought you said this place would be easy to find. I lost my way," he said, unclasping the cloak from his shoulders and handing it to one of the dwarves nearby. "Twice." The newcomer glanced over at the wizard, slight amusement in his face at his own troubles. "I would not have found it at all had it not been for that sign on the door."

"Sign?" Emi's voice sounded, it seemed unusually high pitched in comparison to the dwarf's deep rumble. "What sign? There is no sign on my door!" she squeezed passed the others at last to look at the maroon front.

"No lass," Balin spoke up as Emi stared, open mouthed at the runes etched into the maroon wood. "That sign clearly reads, 'Burglar wants work. No reasonable offer refused.'" Emi stared at it for a moment for turning helplessly to her guests.

"That's not my sign." She pointed to it, voice cracking slightly. Gandalf quickly intervened, closing the door and standing between it and the distressed hobbit as some of the dwarves chuckled in amusement.

"Emilie Brandybuck, allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield." At the mention of his name, the new dwarf straightened up and turned fully to Emilie.

"So, this is the hobbit." He looked her up and down for a moment before frowning slightly. "Gandalf, you made no mention that she was a woman."

"I don't see how it's important." Gandalf said simply, smiling slightly at the dwarf, who sighed before looking back at Emi.

"Tell me, Ms. Brandybuck, have you done much fighting?" Thorin asked, pacing around her.

"Excuse me?" Emi said, confusion evident on her face.

"Axe or sword." Thorin continued, coming to the front of her again. "What's your weapon of choice?"

"W-well…" Emi stammered. "Well… I prefer slicing bread to chopping wood… but I have a feeling that's not what you mean." She added as the dwarves chuckled at her.

"As I thought." Thorin smirked. "She seems more of a grocer than a burglar."

"Aye," Emi heard one of the dwarves mutter in the back. "Always nibbling at her stock." The hobbit's eyes flashed dangerously as she surveyed the other dwarves who had now fallen silent.

"Come." Thorin said to the dwarves. "We have much to discuss and I'm hungry." The rest of the dwarves and Gandalf filed after the dwarf leader into the now dark, empty dining room.

"You heard him lass." A red bearded dwarf said to her. "Get some food for him." Emi sent him a sharp glare before turning away to get something for her latest guest. Thankfully, there was a bit of stew left over, which she quickly heated and brought out with a remaining roll. A tankard of mead had already been placed before Thorin when she returned to the dining room. The dwarf leader gave a small nod of thanks as Emi set the simple, but warm meal down in front of him. The company of dwarves sat in silence for a little while, as their leader tucked quietly into his supper. Emi again moved into the parlor, trying to find anything left for herself, and coming up short, save for a small biscuit that had been left on the bottom shelf. The hobbit grabbed it and sat against the wall, listening to the silence in her home. Had she not been so cross at him for calling her a grocer, Emi might have commended Thorin on his manners. Instead, she just listened to the voices that began quietly from the room next to her.

"What news from the meeting in Ered Luin?" Balin's voice asked. "Did they all come?"

"Aye," Thorin's deep voice replied. "Envoys from all seven kingdoms."

"What do the dwarves of the Iron hills say?" Dwalin pressed. "Is Dain with us?" Silence filled the house again.

"They will not come." Thorin reported solemnly. Murmurs replied in disappointment. "They say this quest is ours, and ours alone."

"You're… going on a quest?" Emi spoke up cautiously, walking anxiously into the dining room.

"Emilie, my dear, let us have a little more light, shall we?" Gandalf said, as the little hobbit hurried up to comply. She returned with a candle as the wizard spread a map out on the table. Speaking in a low voice, Gandalf began. "Far to the east, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single solitary peak."

"The Lonely Mountain…" Emi read, holding the candle closer to the parchment in order to make out the crimson words scrawled across the top.

"Aye." The red bearded dwarf spoke up. "Oin has read the portents, and the portents say it is time." A couple groans sounded from the other dwarves, obviously tired of Oin and his 'portents'.

"Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain, as it was foretold." Oin nodded, speaking forcefully. "When the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end."

"Beast?" Emi asked quietly, feeling very lost at the moment.

"Well that would be a reference to Smaug the Terrible." The hatted one spoke up. "Chiefest and greatest calamity of our age. Airborne fire-breather, teeth like razors, claws like meat hooks, extremely fond of precious metals-"

"So a dragon basically." Emi cut him off quickly.

"I'm not afraid!" Ori said, springing up from his seat in the corner. "I'm up for it. I'll give him a taste of the dwarfish iron right up his jacksie!" Several dwarves shouted at this. Some telling him to sit down, others cheering him on. Emi was pretty sure she heard one of them say something along the lines of "There's a lady present lad! Mind your language!" But Balin silenced them all.

"The task would be difficult enough with an army behind us. But we number just thirteen. And not thirteen of the best, nor brightest." This comment got several more shouts, mostly angry ones. This time it was Fili who cut them off.

"We may be few in number, but we're fighters. All of us. To the last dwarf!" he slammed the table for emphasis.

"And you forget, we have a wizard in our company!" Kili added eagerly. "Gandalf will have killed _hundreds_ of dragons in his time!"

"Uh, well now… I wouldn't say…" Gandalf stammered, shaking his head.

"How many then?" Dori asked.

"Hm?"

"How many dragons have you killed?" the question came again. Gandalf coughed in embarrassment. "Go on! Give us a number!" This time, all the dwarves began shouting; most of them stood up and began raising their fists aggressively. Emi stammered quietly, trying to calm them all down, unsuccessfully.

"Shazara!" Thorin yelled loudly, standing as well. At this, all the dwarves fell silent and returned slowly to their seats. Their leader regarded them all with a firm glare before speaking again, slight anxiousness in his voice. "If we have read these signs, do you not think others will have read them too? Rumors have begun to spread. The dragon Smaug has not been seen in sixty years. Eyes look to the East, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected." All doubt was gone from his voice now. "Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor?" He shouted this last question, the dwarves letting out cheers of approval. "Du Bekâr! Du Bekâr!"

"You forget that the front gate is sealed!" Balin's voice rang over the rest. The dwarves fell silent and Thorin returned to his seat. "There is no way into the mountain." The faces of the dwarves fell.

"That, my dear Balin," Gandalf spoke up. "Is not entirely true." The wizard twirled around his fingers, a large key seemingly appearing from nowhere. Thorin's eyes watched it in wonder.

"How came you by this?" the dwarf asked.

"It was given to me by your father, by Thrain." Gandalf told him. "For safe keeping. It is yours now." The wizard handed the key to a still awestruck Thorin, who accepted it gratefully.

"If there is a key…" Fili spoke up, breaking the silence. "There must be a door." Gandalf looked up at the blonde haired dwarf, amusement sparkling in his eyes.

"These runes speak of a hidden passage to the lower halls." The wizard said, indicating the map.

"There's another way in!" Kili whispered excitedly.

"Well, if we can find it." Gandalf sighed. "But dwarf doors are invisible when closed. The answer lies somewhere hidden in this map, and I do not have the skill to find it. But there are others in middle earth who can." He turned to Thorin now. "The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth, and no small amount of courage. But if we are careful, and clever, I believe it can be done."

"That's why we need a burglar." Ori spoke up.

"Not just any burglar." Emi scoffed, now knowing exactly what the dwarves were attempting to do. "You'd need the bravest, most skilled burglar ever to get past a dragon!"

"And are you?" Gloin asked, raising an eyebrow. Emi looked up at him in surprise.

"Am I what?" she glanced around in alarm.

"She said she's the best!" Oin laughed

"What? Me?" Emi exclaimed. "No, _I'm_ not a burglar! I just meant you would need one! I haven't ever taken anything that I hadn't earned myself!"

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Ms. Brandybuck." Balin sighed. "She's hardly burglar material."

"Yes, thank you!" Emi smiled at the old dwarf, relieved that someone was on her side for once.

"Aye." Dwalin grunted, looking over the lass's slight frame. "The wild is no place for gentlefolk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves."

"Very true." Emi nodded in agreement. The dwarves began arguing again, some of them saying she would be a fine burglar, others saying she would not. To Emi, however, it was all just loud. She shrunk back slightly as the dwarves just got louder.

"Enough!" Gandalf barked, rising in his seat. His shadow seemed to elongate, covering the ceiling and silencing the dwarves who leaned back in fear. "If I say Emilie Brandybuck is a burglar, than a burglar she is!" Emi quivered in shock before realizing what the wizard was saying. Gandalf's shadow came back to its normal state and he continued in a much calmer, happier tone. "Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. In fact, they can pass unseen by most if they choose. And while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of dwarf, the scent of hobbit is all but unknown to him, which gives us a distinct advantage." The dwarves seemed to, for the most part, accept this, and Gandalf turned back to Thorin. "You asked my to find the fourteenth member of you company, and I have chosen Ms. Brandybuck. There's much more to her than appearances suggest, and she's got a great deal more to offer than any of you know!" the wizard spared a glance at the confused hobbit. "Including herself. Thorin, you must trust me on this." The dwarf leader looked at Gandalf for a while before sighing.

"Very well. We'll do it your way."

"What?" Emi's eyes widened. "No! No I don't- I'm not-"

"Give her the contract." Thorin instructed Balin, ignoring the protesting hobbit.

"Please…" Emi pleaded, looking around at the others for help.

"Alright! We're off!" Bofur cheered as Balin stood, holding a folded paper out.

"It's just the usual summary of out of pocket expenses, time required, remuneration," the old dwarf listed. "Funeral arrangements so forth."

"Funeral arrangements?" Emi squeaked as Thorin grabbed the contract from Balin and thrust it into the hobbit's hands. Emi looked down helplessly at the contract before walking away a few steps and unfolding the contract, which fell past her knees. Thorin stood up slowly and leaned over towards Gandalf.

"I cannot guarantee her safety." The dwarf warned him.

Gandalf nodded. "Understood."

"Nor will I be responsible for her fate." Gandalf glanced over at the dwarf for a second before hesitantly replying.

"Agreed." Satisfied, Thorin leaned away from the wizard and stood, arms folded over his chest, while he listened to the hobbit read the long contract out loud.

"Terms: Cash on delivery. Up to, but not exceeding, one fourteenth of total profit, if any… makes sense." She sighed to herself. "Um… present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof. Including, but not limited to… lacerations…" She squinted at the next word. "Evisceration…" there was a silence before Emi padded over to the wizard. "Gandalf…" she said, pointing to a line on the parchment. "It says… incineration." She looked at him, eyebrows raised. Gandalf looked down at her wide eyes before glancing at Balin, then Thorin. Both of who were looking away purposefully. Emi turned to the entire company. "There's a chance I'll get incinerated?" she squeaked.

"Oh, aye." Bofur nodded. "He'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye." Emi paled completely. She made a little coughing noise that seemed to die in the back of her throat before she turned away and walked back into the other room, jaw clenching and unclenching considerably.

"You all right their lass?" Balin asked kindly.

"I-I'll be fine…" she nodded, still not looking over at them. She coughed slightly into her fist before pressing it anxiously against her mouth. "Just feeling a little lightheaded. I'm sure it'll pass." She took a deep breath before bending over. She needed to sit down.

"Think furnace, with wings!" Bofur smiled, coming over to lean against the door jam.

"Happy thoughts, happy thoughts…" Emi muttered to herself, spots appearing before her eyes.

"Flash of light, searing pain, and then Poof! You're nothing more than a pile of ash!" All eyes watched Emi intently as she breathed in and out slowly. After a few moments, she straightened up, smiled a bit and looked at Bofur.

"I hate you." And she dropped to the ground with a soft thud.

Gandalf sighed. "Very helpful Bofur."

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><p><strong>Wow this is a long chapter... Maybe, it'll get some reviews? Please? It took a long time to write this one!<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for all the lovely reviews! You have no idea how encouraging they are! Please enjoy the chapter!**

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><p>"She has these queer little fits." Gandalf told the dwarves dismissively as Gloin and Nori moved her to a chair by the hearth. "But she's bold as a dragon in a pinch!"<p>

"Indeed?" Thorin scoffed.

"Here now," The wizard stood. "Dori, some of that chamomile if there's any left would be good. Oin, do you have some smelling salts with you?"

"Aye, lad." The older dwarf nodded, getting up from his chair to retrieve them. A few minutes later, Emi was awake again, nursing a hot mug of tea while staring into the fire. The dwarves could not help but notice her jump whenever the fire popped or cracked. After realizing that their host would not be recovering any time soon, the company slowly dispersed in a quiet murmur, conversing with a few of each other in low tones.

"Are you sure you're alright Miss?" Ori's anxious voice said for beside her. Emi looked up in surprise.

"Oh! Yes, yes I'll be fine… just give me a moment." She smiled up at the sweet dwarf who nodded before turning and leaving. Emi sat back into the comfy chair before springing up again at the sound of Gandalf's deep voice.

"You've had quiet long enough of a moment, my dear!" The wizard crossed to look at her wide-eyed face. "You cannot expect these dwarves to wait around forever just for you to make up your mind!"

"Agreed!" Emi frowned back, feeling defensive. "But that doesn't mean that you can just expect me to give up my home and my friends… and my _life_ at the drop of a hat!" Gandalf let out a frustrated sigh before sitting down in an attempt to calm himself. After a moment of silence, the wizard looked back down at the smaller creature.

"My dear, if I had the time to warn you ahead of time, I would…" Emi stared back at him, uncertainty scrawled across her face. "But what's done is done and all that we can focus on is the present." The hobbit's face dropped to stare blatantly into her tea. "I am offering you the opportunity to go on a great adventure. And I am certain that you will _never_ get a chance like this again." Emi continued to stare at the smoke rising from her mug before watery eyes looked up into Gandalf's own gray irises.

"If you climb a mountain you can jump off a cliff." She replied. "That doesn't mean you should." Another silence filled the room. Gandalf took a deep breath before replying.

"But if you never jump, then how will you learn to soar?" A breath hitched in the hobbit's throat as she stared at the old man.

"Gandalf…" her voice came out wearily, as if her entire thought was being put into every word. "I'm a simple person who comes from a simple folk. I live for my bread, my hearth, the flowers in the morning, and the fireflies at night." The wizard frowned as she continued. "I don't need riches, or adventure… definitely not dragons."

"Emilie, my dear lass, it's only after you've seen such great wonders until you can _truly_ appreciate the simple things in life."

"I won't be able to enjoy anything if I'm dead." She smiled. "I don't want to die. I plan to have a long life ahead of me. A quiet, peaceful life, with no wizards or dwarves, and absolutely no adventures."

"Life is a very long thing." The aged man replied, his eyes twinkling with wisdom. "Do you really want to spend the rest of it here? Baking, gardening, blowing smoke rings from the sun's rise, to the moon's?" Emi's smile slowly faded away again. Her eyes were clouded and troubled by these words. The fire crackled next to them and the murmur of dwarves tinted the air. The smell of food and pipe smoke drifted amongst the quiet hum, while Emi's thumbs slid across the smooth ceramic mug again and again.

"I'm sorry Gandalf." She said at last, standing up wearily. "I can't sign this." Gandalf frowned as he watched the hobbit pad away into the depths of the house. Emi did not go straight to her bed, however. After walking about the inhabited rooms vaguely, she finally spotted him. The dwarven leader stood in the shadow of the hall, Balin across from him. They may have been talking once, but they weren't now. Instead, they stood in silence, each in his own thoughts.

Swallowing slightly, Emi walked gingerly over to the two of them, but she addressed only Thorin. He looked up at her approach and waited for her to speak. Under the dwarf's intense gaze, Emi suddenly felt her mouth run dry. There was no anger in his gaze, but there was something that burned constantly in the dwarf lord. An unspoken vow. The hobbit coughed slightly to focus her mind and began.

"Master Oakenshield," she regarded him. "I'd like to apologize for the inconvenience I have caused you. There seems to have been a misunderstanding." He raised an eyebrow. "I am not a burglar. I'm just a woman. And what you need is warriors, heroes… and I am neither of those. I wish you the greatest of luck on your quest. And perhaps, someday, we will meet again. You and your company are welcome to drop by whenever you pass this way." A small, sad smile appeared on her face before she turned and left.

"Well, it appears we have lost our burglar." Balin sighed from Thorin's side, before turning to look at him. "Probably for the best. The odds were always against us. After all, what are we? Merchants, miners… tinkers, toymakers." The old dwarf scoffed. "Hardly the stuff of legend." A smile shone in the younger dwarf's eyes.

"There are a few warriors amongst us." He smiled slightly.

"Old warriors." Balin replied, giving him a look. Thorin gazed at his old friend for a moment before speaking again.

"I would take each and every one of these dwarves over an army from the Iron Hills. For when I called upon them, they came. Loyalty. Honor. A willing heart… I can ask no more than that." Balin gazed at the smiling face of his king. A deep sadness lingered there. One that would never have been when they still lived under the mountain.

"You don't have to do this." The old dwarf shook his head. "You have a choice. You've done honorably for our people. You have built a new life for us in the Blue Mountains, a life of peace and plenty. A life that is worth more than all the gold in Erebor." The faint traces of smile disappeared from Thorin's face as he held up the ornate, iron key.

"From my grandfather to my father, this has come to me. They dreamt of the day when the dwarves of Erebor would reclaim their homeland." The other dwarf fixed the key with a distasteful glare. "There is no choice, Balin. Not for me." Balin looked back up into the eyes of his friend.

"Then we are with you laddie." He nodded. "We will see it done."

Slowly, thirteen dwarves drifted into one of the rooms. Pipe smoke drifted up to the ceiling in a lazy motion as Thorin stood, one arm leaning against the mantle as he stared into the crackling fire. A deep, hypnotic humming built in the dwarves' throats as the flames danced before them.

"_Far over, the Misty Mountains cold,_" The words came from deep within the dwarf king, emotions that only stirred in song.

"_To dungeons deep, and caverns old._

_We must away, ere break of day,_

_To find our long forgotten gold._" In the back of his mind, Thorin was aware of other voices joining his own as he continued to stare into the tongues of fire.

"_The pines were roaring on the height_" By now, all thirteen dwarves were singing along in deep tones, the song growing in strength and feeling.

_The winds were moaning in the night,_

_The fire was red, it flaming spread,_" Emi's head rested against her bedpost. Her limbs and eyes were heavy and tired. Her mind was tired. But something was disturbed deep with in her as the low tones washed over her from somewhere in her little home. A soothing, unsettling feeling that kept her listless eyes from drooping into a bottomless slumber.

"_The trees like torches, blazed with light._"

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><p><strong>Yes, this chapter was on the short side, but the last one was so long!<strong>

**Please review! If you review, I will write! Sound like a deal? Good. ^-^**


	5. Chapter 5

**The unexpected party is over! Now what?**

**Thank you for all the lovely reviews! Please enjoy!**

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><p>A foggy haze of sleep and waking lay over Emi like a warm, fluffy blanket. She new that sun was shining through an open window, and birds were chirping amongst the trees. But it was the stillness that finally roused her. The quiet that caused her to spring up from under her covers and crawl out of her bed. Emi's bare feet moved silently over the wooden floors as she crept through the halls of her own home. She tensed as she turned every corner, before letting out a sigh of relief every time the lack of dwarves met her dark green eyes. Slowly, she made her way through the rooms until she came to the front door. There were no dwarves to be seen. Her house was returned to normal, clean of the mess made the night before. For a moment, Emi began to think it had all been a bad dream. But the voices of the dwarves still echoed in her ears. They had been real. She was sure of it. But there was no trace of them. Except… the long, unrolled parchment lying on the otherwise empty table. Her eyes fell on it for a moment, before she turned away quickly. She had made up her mind. This was one hobbit that would never go on any adventures! Then she realized that she had been idling and walked forward. Time to start her day and pretend the whole thing had never happened. She smiled to herself, a new blank slate to begin on, just like every morning, waiting to be filled with the happenings of the day. What should she fill it with this time?<p>

_Life is a very long thing_. The words of the wizard surfaced again in her mind. Emi frowned and walked into her kitchen. Better start with a good breakfast. That would get her thinking right again. Maybe she would go to the market today and refill her pantry… The hobbit gazed around at her simple table, her oven, her hearth.

_Do you really want to spend the rest of it here?_ Green eyes drifted once more to the paper sitting on her table. She gulped slightly and walked over to it. Her gaze wandered over the scrawling letters.

Conditions of Engagement

Agreed hereto freely and under neither duress nor force nor concern nor extortion nor threat to life and/or limb, and superseding any prior contract agreement, or undertaking…

…In role as Burglar for Thorin and Company, or in any other role as they see fit, at their sole discretion from time to time…

Her eyes rose from the parchment. She licked her lips for a moment in thought, a conflict being waged terribly with in her. Then, all at once, she dashed off. In search of her pen.

The long row of sixteen ponies trotted along the path through sparse, tall trees and lush green grass. Only two of the ponies were rider less, however. Thorin rode at the head, most of the dwarves conversing peacefully behind him. The sounds of his nephew's voices and some of the others rose over the rest.

"It'll never happen!" Kili argued loudly.

"I don't know Kee." His older brother shrugged. "I think there's still a chance." A chorus of protests came from the others.

"I wouldn't bet on it." Bombur sighed.

"I would." Oin laughed.

"Twenty shillings?" Nori's eager voice came in reply.

"Twenty-five." The older one boasted.

"Let's hope you have that much." The dwarven thief smirked.

"She'll never come!" Kili repeated.

"I think she will." Fili snorted.

"Not a chance." Dori shook his head. At the front, Thorin listened as his men placed their bets. Only Oin, Fili, and Gandalf placed any wages in favor of the little Halfling. Thorin frowned. There was no chance. The hobbit had said herself that she would not go. Maybe Nori would be a fine enough burglar for whatever schemes Gandalf had in mind. Perhaps the wizard would come up with a new plan. One more honorable. But that would only matter once they reached the mountain. There was still a mountain range, a forest and huge tracks of land between them and Erebor. But they would reach it. They had to.

"-ait! Wait! Please stop!" a tiny voice sounded from behind them. Thorin pulled the reigns on his horse sharply and looked behind him. Running up the path they had just travelled was a small little creature dressed in trousers and coat, a pack strapped to her back and long brown ringlets bouncing behind her. The company stopped in confusion as all heads looked back.

Panting, Emilie approached the Balin, parchment flapping in her hand. "I signed it." she grinned through exhausted gasps. She handed the paper over to Balin who took out a bespectacled and peered through it at the contract in his hand.

"Everything appears to be in order." The old dwarf announced. "Welcome, Miss Brandybuck, to the company of Thorin Oakenshield." Most of the dwarves cheered, despite the fact that he arrival would mean a few less coins in the purses of most of them. Balin gave the breathless lass a wink, which caused her to laugh slightly. It was a beautiful sound, Thorin thought. One that matched very well with the face now lit up by a merry, though slightly nervous, smile. A dismissive smirk slipped ever so slightly on the dwarf lord's face.

"Give her a pony." He instructed before turning back around in his seat and starting his pony forward again.

"A pony?" Emi's squeak came from behind him. "No, no, no ponies needed thank you! I'll be quite fine on foot. I'm rather fond of walking you see, and- WAGH!" as Fili and Kili scooped her up by an arm on each side and deposited her directly onto one of the empty horses. Both of them laughing merrily the entire time as the hobbit sputtered and squirmed in protest.

Emi's nose wrinkled in distaste as she gingerly picked up the reigns and held them tightly in front of her. Her body was stiff as a board as her eyes fixed themselves disagreeably on the pony in front of her, which tossed its head up, braying slightly. The hobbit jumped in surprise, letting out a small yelp. Kili and Fili laughed behind her. She turned her head around and gave them a sharp glare. Or at least, she would have if she had not been too intent on trying not to fall off of her mount. A leather pouch came flying past her head, startling her again.

"Come on, Nori, pay up." Oin shouted ahead. "Go on." Grumbling, the ginger dwarf tossed back another leather pouch, which Oin caught easily, chuckling to himself as he pocketed it.

"What was that about?" Emi said, looking over at Gandalf, her fear temporarily forgotten.

"Oh, they took wagers on whether or not you would turn up." He informed her. "Most of them bet you wouldn't." Emi frowned.

"What did you think?" she asked curiously.

"Well…" the wizard hesitated. The hobbit frowned further. Then Gandalf raised the hand not holding his staff. A leather pouch, similar to others being tossed around, landed in his hand. "My dear Emilie," he chuckled. "I never doubted you for a second." Emi grinned back before sneezing suddenly.

"Oh no," she groaned. "_This_ is why I don't like ponies." The hobbit grumbled, searching through her pockets. "No…" she murmured. "I was sure I grabbed one… No, Stop! Stop!" she called to the front. Several dwarves halted their ponies in alarm, looking around for any sign of danger. "We have to go back!" the hobbit declared.

"What on earth in the matter?" Gandalf frowned at her.

"I forgot my handkerchief." She told him, fretting terribly. The mix of laughter and groans erupted from the dwarves.

"Here." Bofur said, ripping of part of his tunic. "Use this!" Emi caught the piece of cloth that had been tossed to her and made a face.

"I don't even want to know the last time this has been washed." She grimaced, inspecting the blotched, moist cloth. Bofur just grinned at her as the rest of the dwarves laughed at the hobbit.

"Move on." Thorin called from the front, turning his pony around again. The procession started forward again.

"You'll have to manage without pocket-handkerchiefs and a good many other things, Emilie Brandybuck, before we reach our journey's end." Gandalf chuckled from next to her. "You were born to the rolling hills and little rivers of the shire. But home is now behind you, the world is ahead."

And ahead it was indeed, as Emi soon discovered. She spent the first day marveling at the wondrous scenery, though the shire was still evident in the softness of the land. The sun was setting fast when Thorin finally called to make camp. The dwarves all dismounted groaning or joking about their aches and pains. Emi just sat atop her pony, clearly troubled.

"What's the matter lass?" Bofur asked, coming up to her. Emi frowned at the dwarf.

"How am I supposed to get off this thing?" she asked, motioning to the shaggy pony.

"Myrtle." The dwarf said, tying his own pony's reigns to a nearby tree.

"Pardon?" Emi looked over at him.

"Her name's Myrtle." He smiled back. "Just thought you might like to know."

"Oh…" Emi said, looking down at the gentle beast. "Well," she cleared her throat. "Myrtle, would you mind bending down so that I could get off?" the pony ignored her. "It was worth a shot." The hobbit sighed as Bofur let out a hearty laugh before walking over to her.

"You won't be getting her to sit down." He told the hobbit. "You'll have to make a jump for it."

"What?" Emi's eyes widened. "But… but..."

"Don't worry lass, here, I'll catch you." The dwarf offered. Emi frowned.

"No… no I'll manage." The hobbit said, gritting her teeth in determination. "Just tell me what I need to do." Bofur regarded the woman for a second before nodding.

"Alright then, first, you need to grab the saddle horn, yep just like that." The dwarf instructed as the hobbit carefully followed his instructions. "Now, take your feet out of the stirrups… good. Just hold on to the horn and swing your left leg over."

"Wah!" Emi let out as she slipped off the side of Myrtle, her hands releasing the saddle horn in surprise. Pain shot up through her stiff legs as her feet landed firmly on the ground. "Ow…" she murmured looking down at her numbing legs.

"Don't worry lass." Bofur laughed, patting her on the shoulder. "It'll pass in a bit. Next time, try bending your legs when you land. You won't feel a thing."

"A-alright." Emi nodded with determination.

"Now, let's go get something to eat, shall we?" Emi tied up her pony with the others and left to join the dwarves around the now crackling fire.

Emi found the dwarves, while still lively, to be a lot calmer and quieter outdoors, or perhaps it just felt that way since their deep, loud voices disappeared into the night, rather than bouncing off the walls of her tiny home. Home… It suddenly occurred to the little hobbit that she would not be seeing her little hobbit hole for quite some time. Nor any of her neighbors for that matter. She probably should have left a note for Hamfast. But there wasn't time. Had he noticed she was gone that day? Maybe he had, and the hobbits had gotten so worried that they had devised a search party to look for her. There spirit's falling along with the sun as it dipped below the hills. What would they think happened to her?

The woman frowned as she stared into the fire. They probably wouldn't think much at all. She had never gotten very close with any of the other hobbits except Hamfast, and even he would not pay her a visit for days at a time. There was always _someone_ visiting every now and then. But it was often out of boredom or convenience, not because they actually cared for her too much.

"-ldn't believe it!... are you listening?" Kili's enthusiastic voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Hm, what?" she looked over at disappointed brown eyes.

"Sorry, am I boring you?" the dwarven archer frowned. He had been in the middle of a most a musing tale about the time he and his brother had added woodlouse to Thorin's stew, when he noticed that his audience, the only person in the company who hadn't heard the story a thousand times over, seemed to be drifting.

"Oh, no I'm sorry." Emi smiled quickly. "I got a bit distracted. Anyway, you were saying?"

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><p><strong>^-^ And the adventure begins!<strong>

**Remember, your review=next chapter! So please, if you want to read more, review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Another chapter with not much happening. Sorry guys. Thanks for the reviews though! You have no idea how helpful they are! Please enjoy!**

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><p>The next day, Emi was groggily roused by Bofur, who helped her onto Myrtle after a quick, unfulfilling breakfast. The hobbit was too tired to attempt and learn how to mount a pony by herself today. She had gotten almost no sleep last night as she rolled around on the hard ground, trying to find a place to lie that didn't have a huge root sticking into her back.<p>

The second day of travel was not nearly as exciting as the first, though the terrain slowly began to grow larger and more drastic. Cliffs and pine trees were the main sight to see, and they followed along a river for a bit, which led over to a steep incline. Most of the ponies went down without a problem, but Emi had to get Nori to lead Myrtle down behind his own creature.

By the third day, Emi was no longer interested in the land around her. She looked around every once in awhile to appreciate it for a moment before looking ahead again at the backside of another pony. The others were quiet too. The excitement of the journey that had first carried them had begun to wear down. This left Emi to her thoughts, which often drifted back towards home. As the monotonous sound of hooves drumming over hard ground sounded in her mind, she pictured her little home back in the shire. The flowerpots sat merrily on her porch and the stump squatted on slightly raised ground, inviting her to rest awhile and blow some smoke rings up into the open sky. The round maroon door of the home itself was slightly ajar. A welcome sight. But as Emi started towards it, she saw the faces of dwarves appear in the crack, laughing at her before the door was slammed suddenly in her face.

The hobbit's eyes shot open and she looked around frantically, before realizing that she must have dozed off. Nothing had changed much since her mind had begun to wander. The only difference was that Fili and Kili had stopped conversing with one another quietly and the scenery had begun to rise as the company made their way to higher ground. Emi relaxed again, though she took care not to drift off a second time. There was something unsettling in the way the dwarves in her dream had laughed at her. Something malicious in their glares. The tired hobbit tried her best to push the grinning faces of the dream dwarves out of her mind, but whenever she seemed to manage it, there it came again, sneaking into the corners of her vision.

The hours passed by in dreadful slowness until Thorin called back, telling the others to break for camp. They had set up that night between two cliffs, on rising above them, the other dropping away into a forest below. The ponies were kept close by, seeing as there was no good place to graze. Emi swung down from her pony without assistance or injury; Bofur commented lightly that she was a fast learner. Emi thanked him back, but could not help but notice how the comment could have been perceived as slightly sarcastic.

The meal that night was rather quiet in comparison to other meals, and most of the dwarves quickly retired to their bedrolls. Emi included. Only Kili and Fili stayed awake, since they were on watch. Or at least, Fili was, Kili was just restless.

Emi tossed and turned for what felt like ages, until at last, she put her self on the ground and decided that she would not move until she fell asleep. It did not work. What made it even worse was Bombur's snoring. In and out and in and out, one would think he was fighting a war instead of simply breathing. The hobbit tried her best to ignore it, but the more she ignored it, the better she heard it. Then she heard the flittering of tiny wings that would stop whenever the large dwarf would inhale and then start again on the exhalation. She sat up abruptly, glaring at the large dwarf. The moths were sucked in again. This wasn't going to work. Emi was now confident there would be no rest for her that night. And the fluttered out again. _Definitely_ no sleep.

Stiffly, Emi, wriggled out of her thin bedroll and padded away from the other dwarves, the younger two brothers only spared her a glance before going back to their own thoughts. The barefooted woman moved slowly over to the ponies before sitting down tiredly next to Myrtle's large, grazing head.

Her eyes were heavy, and she wished desperately to fall asleep. She almost did as she sat there, one hand propping up her head and the other rhythmically petting the fuzz between her pony's eyes. But just before she nodded off, the mocking laughter echoed in her head again and she sat up.

She _knew_ it wasn't any good. She _knew _that she should just get over it and realize that it was just a passing daydream… or nightmare, rather. But the hobbit could not shake the feeling, that somewhere, in the back of their minds the dwarves did feel that way. Dislike, annoyance, loathing… and she didn't know which was worse, that or the complete dismissal that she had received so far from the companies leader. It wasn't that he ignored her, but he just didn't care. Emi was the _wizard's_ charge. It was the _wizard_ that wanted her along, and if Thorin had his way, the Halfling would still be back in her home, baking bread or perhaps visiting friends. And a nasty feeling grew in Emi's stomach as she realized that if she had her way, she'd still be home too.

"So in the end it's all Gandalf's fault." Emi muttered quietly to herself as she felt the pony next her move under her hand. "Isn't that right girl?" she turned to look at the pony who glanced one eye at her, but did not stop each grass diligently. Emi snorted quietly. "Eh, what do you care? As long as your fed, right?" the hobbit chuckled to herself as she watched the beast munching contentedly.

Under her hand, Emi felt the gently pony tense. A bloodcurdling, morbid scream rang through the air. Emi's eyes flew open and she shot up from her seat, all fatigue gone. She hurried back towards the fire; hands feeling unnaturally clammy and she could feel Goosebumps prickling down her spine.

"What was that?" she asked the two dwarves still awake by the fire. Both of them had also looked around at the sound.

"Orcs." Kili replied, glancing warily into the darkness beyond the light of the fire. Another faint scream sounded farther off.

"Orcs?" Emi's voice repeated, coming closer. Thorin's restful eyes jolted awake as the woman's higher pitched voice cut through the air.

"Throat-cutters." Fili elaborated, looking around nonchalantly. "There'll be dozens of them out there. The lowlands are crawling with them."

"They strike in the wee small hours when everyone's asleep." Kili added ominously. "Quick and quiet, no screams." His eyes widened. "Just lots of blood." Emi turned around quickly to stare into the darkness beyond the ring of firelight, her hand wrung worriedly. Kili and Fili watched her intently for a moment before their faces cracked into smiles and they shared a glance chuckling quietly before turning back to what they had been doing.

"You think that's funny?" both looked up in surprise to see the disapproving glare of their uncle on them. Emi turned around in surprise looking in confusion at the down faces of the young dwarves. "You think a night raid by orcs is a joke?" Thorin continued.

"We… we didn't mean anything by it." Kili looked down, jaw clenching slightly in shame.

"No, you didn't." Thorin spat, standing up. "You know nothing of the world." He hissed before stalking away from camp in an attempt to clear his head. Emi looked back at him, frowning. Thorin was usually quiet, but the hobbit wasn't used to seeing him so angry.

"Don't mind him, laddie." Balin comforted the youngest Durin, appearing by the cliff wall. "Thorin has more cause than most, to hate orcs." The old dwarf's eyes lingered on the back of his old friend before turning to three pairs of wide eyes. "After the dragon took the Lonely Mountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient dwarf kingdom of Moria… But our enemy had gotten there first." Fili and Kili tensed. They had heard this story many times before, and they knew what Balin meant. Emi just stared wide-eyed at the white bearded dwarf, slowly taking a seat by the fire. Once she was seated, Balin continued. "Moria had been taken by legions of orcs, lead by the most vile of all their race. Azog, the Defiler. The giant Gundabad Orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin. He began… by beheading the king." Emi stifled a gasp quickly, not wanting to interrupt the story. "Thrain, Thorin's father, was driven mad by grief. He went missing, taken prisoner or killed, we do not know." Balin shook his head sadly. "We were leaderless. Defeat and death were upon us. That… is when I saw him. A young dwarf prince, facing down the Pale orc." Emi turned her head to gaze at Thorin, who stood overlooking the cliff. "He stood alone against this terrible foe, his armor rent… wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield." The old dwarf smirked slightly at the memory. "Azog the Defiler learned that day that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken. Our forces rallied and drove the orcs back. Our enemy had been defeated." The smile disappeared again. "But there was no feast, no song, that night. For our dead were beyond the count of grief." He straightened slightly, pushing back the memories that surfaced. "We few had survived. And I thought to myself then… there is one I could follow." Balin looked up again at the dwarf standing only a few yards away. "There is one… I could call King." Slowly, Thorin turned around, the stench of the battle, fought long ago, still lingering on his senses. He raised his eyes to see all the company staring at him, a mix of awe and pity on their faces.

"But the pale orc." Emi's voice broke the silence as she turned back to look at Balin. "What happened to him?" Thorin's jaw clenched again as he strode back to his resting place.

"He slunk back into the hole from which he came." The dwarf growled. "That _filth_ died of his wounds long ago." No one said anything to this, though a brief look was shared between Balin and Gandalf, who had positioned himself at the bottom of a tree. Guilt and worry filled this look. But it went unnoticed. "Get some rest, all of you." Thorin's voice commanded as he sat himself down again. "We start at first light." It as a long time before anyone found rest that night.

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><p><strong>Well, please review! I'm trying to write more chapters, but my inspiration is slipping away fast! Please, review or PM me with any ideas! <strong>

**And of course, encouragement is nice too! ;)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello! Not dead! anyway, here is the next chapter! Finally got around to posting it. Thanks for all the reviews and please enjoy!**

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><p>Emi could not help but feel refreshed in the quiet hush of the next morning. Though very little sleep had been gotten by any of the company that night, something about the tale renewed their sense of purpose. Only Thorin seemed worse off. As they rode the fourth day, Emi could not help but notice the frown on his face whenever, she could catch a glimpse of anything but his back. She could only assume that his thoughts were filled with memories, mostly unhappy ones. Balin seemed to notice it as well.<p>

Kili and Fili, however, were on their best behavior. They were being unusually helpful and courteous to the rest of the company. Most of the dwarves grew suspicious of them of course, and the two brothers found that only the hobbit seemed not to doubt their motives. Which she shouldn't have, for the truth of it is, Kili and Fili were feeling a bit of shame after their, uncle's upbraiding.

"Do you have any siblings Emilie?" Kili's voice spoke up. Emi looked over at the young archer and his brother, who were both looking at her expectantly.

"Oh, no not really." The hobbit replied. "My mother died in child birth, so there wasn't really an opportunity. But I have lots of cousins." She thought back. "And second cousins, third cousins, nieces, nephews… I don't really know many of them very well. But most hobbits are related to one another somehow." Fili nodded, urging her to continue. "The esteemed Mister Baggins himself the grandson of the second cousin of my great grandfather on my father's side." Both dwarves laughed at this.

"How do you keep it all straight?" Kili asked, chuckling.

"Honestly, I have no idea." Emi snorted. "But the more relations you can name, the higher people think of you… to some degree at least. Oh!" The hobbit let out a yelp of surprise as a drop of water landed directly on her nose.

"Balin said it would rain later." Fili commented, looking up at the sky, from which water drops had begun to drip from slowly.

"Just what we need." Kili grumbled, pulling out his cloak from one of the saddlebags on his mount. Several more hoods were produced by the other dwarves, which immediately donned them. Emi looked around in disappointment as the water began to frequent more often.

They were all soaked with in minutes. The noise of the rain made it much to hard to converse easily, so the company traveled in silence through the sparse forest as the heavens pelted them relentlessly. Emi could do nothing but hunker down as much as possible and deal with it.

"Here, Mr. Gandalf?" Dori called out through the drumming of rain. "Can't you do something about this deluge?"

"It is raining Master dwarf!" Gandalf replied back. "And it will continue to rain until the rain is done! If you wish to change the weather of the world, I suggest you find yourself another wizard." This comment was met with silence.

"How many other wizards are there?" Emi asked at last, eyes squinting through the rain. Gandalf looked back at the shivering hobbit briefly.

"There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman, the white. Then there are the two Blue wizards… you know I've quite forgotten their names… and the fifth would be Radagast, the Brown." Gandalf replied.

"And is he a great wizard? Or is he… more like you?" Emi asked bitterly. Gandalf glanced back at her again, slightly offended.

"I think he's a very great wizard!" the bearded man replied. "In his own way. He's a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye over the vast forestlands to the east. And a good thing too. For always evil will look to find a foot hold in this world…"

"What about that Saruman folk?" Emi interrupted.

"Hm?" Gandalf grunted.

"Does he look over the forests too?"

"No, Saruman the white resides in Isenguard, a tall tower at the southern most point of the misty mountains… by the gap of Rohan." The wizard informed. "He watches over the people there."

"What about you then?" Emi asked further. "What do you watch over?"

"Oh, here, there." The wizard answered vaguely.

"That's why he's called the wandering wizard, lass." Bofur said from behind the hobbit. "Never stays in one place for too long."

"I've also heard him called Gandalf Storm crow." Gloin added from just behind Bofur.

"Why's that?" Emi asked curiously.

"Because if he comes by, there's certain to be trouble not too far behind." Oin explained for his brother. Emi did not reply to this, but instead peered through the haze of rain at the tall wizard riding far ahead of them. Storm crow…

The rain continued well into the evening, and the company had to search out some sort of shelter to camp in. It was already dark when they at last came upon a shallow, unoccupied cave. A few bones were scattered about in the corners, as though a large animal had used this cave long ago, but they were too cold and wet to care. It was a break from the rain, that's all that mattered.

The group had split up in search, and Emi had found herself with Balin, Kili, and Fili. It had been Fili who spotted it through the dark. How, Emi still wasn't sure. After searching it and determining it safe, Balin went back to tell the others while Kili and Fili went scouting the immediate area for danger. Emi stayed at the cave to wait for the others.

"No reason for two people to go back out in that downpour." Balin said before turning his pony around and heading out.

The rest of the company arrived at the cave soon enough and began settling down. Emi sat, unnoticed while they did so until Thorin came up to her.

"Why didn't you start a fire?" he demanded.

"Burglars don't start fires." She snapped back, forcing her teeth to stop chattering for a moment. The two glared at each other for a moment before Thorin turned away angrily.

"Oin, Gloin, see if you can get a fire going." The dwarf leader instructed.

"We'll try our best lad." Oin nodded, looking around for any dry wood. Kili and Fili returned shortly dripping heavily as they ducked into the cave.

"Well?" Thorin asked, looking at them expectantly.

"Nothing to report." Fili replied as Kili shook his locks out next to him. Fili raised his arms to block most of the spray before continuing. "The forest is quiet. Nothing would want to be out in this weather." Thorin nodded appreciatively before turning away.

"Bombur, get some food cooking as soon as there's a fire to use." He instructed to the large dwarf, who nodded before turning to unpack his cooking supplies. Nori and Dori came back in with the last of their packs after they had finished tying up the ponies outside. They would have brought their mounts in as well, but there wasn't enough room. Thorin turned to another dwarf. "Bofur, lend the hobbit a dry blanket if we have any." Emi looked up in slight surprise when she heard this. "It'll slow us down if she catches cold." Her face dropped again. Of course, always the burden.

"Here you go lass." Bofur smiled, handing her his own blanket which was only wet on the edges.

"Thank you." Emi smiled back, accepting the dry cloth. A few moments later, cries of excitement erupted as a fire blazed to life. Many of the dwarves stripped off their many top layers and left them to try, leaving them in a basic covering that reminded Emi of sleepwear.

The demeanor of the dwarves was unusually cheery considering the circumstances. Emi could not help but sit back and smile as the rest of the company carried on merrily in front of her. A contented look graced her face as the hobbit drifted into a peaceful slumber.

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><p><strong>So, I tried to take some of the suggestions and give Thorin and Emi a bit more face to face communication... but they're both just... rgh! They don't wan to talk to each other!<strong>

**Anyway, please review! Ideas are ALWAYS appreciated!(if not necessarily used :\)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Big thank you to Kewltim2spar and Just4me! Their reviews are the ONLY reason this chapter got posted!**

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><p>"I'm just saying why do I have to be a <em>burglar<em>?" Emi sighed exasperatedly from her pony as the company traveled along. "It's sounds terribly ill mannered."

"We just thought it would be more precise." Dori shrugged.

"You could call yourself 'Expert treasure hunter' if you prefer." Bofur suggested happily. Of course he said it happily. Bofur was always happy, as Emi had quickly discovered.

"Expert treasure hunter…" the hobbit lass tried it out on her tongue. "I like it."

"I don't see what's wrong with burglar." Gloin grumbled.

"It's fine and all." Emi nodded. "But I'd rather not be lumped in the same category at Nori." The dwarves let out hearty laughs as the fore mentioned dwarf turned back to look at her, one eyebrow raised. "No offense intended." The hobbit added hastily. A content silence fell upon the company as laughter died away. It lingered for a while, each dwarf in his own thoughts. Emi, once again, thought of home. She had two chapters left of a book waiting at home, that she might never get to read. The hobbit could not help but feel slight disappointment at this. After a long time of traveling in silence, Emi spoke up.

"Is that…" she peered over the tree tops. "Is that it? The Lonely Mountain?" all heads turned to follow her gaze. Dwalin let out a loud laugh.

"No, lass." He shook his head. "That's the beginning of the Misty Mountains."

"There's still a long way to go before we reach Erebor." Balin nodded.

"But we've been traveling for weeks!" Emi squeaked. She almost thought she heard Thorin snort from the front, but it was lost in the chuckles of the others. Gandalf looked back at her, a twinkle of amusement in his eye. Emi didn't find there to be anything amusing about the situation. The company continued on until they came upon a clearing with a ruined farmhouse.

"We'll make camp here tonight." Thorin announced, dismounting. "Fili, Kili, mind the ponies. Make sure you stay with them." Gandalf was already off his pony and wandering through the ruins as the rest of the company began unloading. "Oin, Gloin, get a fire going."

"Right you are." Gloin nodded as he began scanning the ground for firewood.

"I think it would be wiser to move on." Gandalf's worried voice called out. Thorin walked over to him and the two began conversing heatedly.

"Here lass," Balin called over to the hobbit. "Hold this for a second. Thank you." He handed Emi the straps of his pack, which she held as he pulled provisions out. The back of the grey wizard leaving hurriedly caught her eye.

"Gandalf? Is everything all right?" the wizard did not reply. "Where are you going?"

"To seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense." The wizard growled, not turning around.

"Who's that?" Emi asked in confusion.

"Myself, Mr. Baggins!" the wizard barked. "I've had enough dwarves for one day!" and he left. Emi frowned. Mr. Baggins? Thorin's voice sounded over the quiet.

"Come on Bombur, we're hungry!" the large dwarf nodded before making his way over to the fire.

"Is he coming back?" Emi asked Balin. The old dwarf just shrugged in reply. The sun dipped below the trees quickly as a simple stew began bubbling over the fire. The hobbit was quiet as the dwarves carried on around her. She kept glancing about, looking for the return of Gandalf. She wished desperately to talk to him about what he had said before. About Mr. Baggins… Did he mean Bilbo Baggins? What would such a respectable hobbit have with a wizard?

"Emi!" Bofur's voice roused her from her thoughts. "Take these to the lads, will you? They're probably starving." The hobbit nodded and took the two bowls from the dwarf's hands before heading over towards the woods in which the ponies had been left to graze. She quickly spotted the figures of Fili and Kili standing stalk still, staring out in front of them.

"What's got you both in a fix?" she asked, walking over to the blank faced dwarves.

"We're supposed to be looking out for the ponies." Kili started.

"Only we've encountered a… slight problem." Fili added.

"We had sixteen."

"Now there's fourteen." Emi glared at them harshly. They both cast her an ashamed glance and started forward.

"Daisy and Bungo are missing." Kili looked around as the three wandered through the trees. They stopped in front of an uprooted tree.

"That's it." Emi glared. "We're telling Thorin."

"No, no, no." Kili shook his head. "Not a good idea."

"Aye," Fili nodded looking at his brother. "Best not to worry him. We thought, as our official burglar, you might take a look in to it."

"Why me?" the hobbit made a face of disgust. "You're the ones who lost the ponies." The dwarves ignored her.

"Hey! There's a light!" Fili spied through the trees. The brothers crouched behind a log, followed quickly by Emi. A faint light of a fire crackled in the distance as rumbling voices sounded.

"What on earth is that?" the hobbit's jaw dropped.

"Trolls." Kili's eyes hardened. All three sprung up. Emi began running back towards camp, then turned to see the other two running towards the light. She heaved an annoyed sigh before turning back around and hurrying after them. She ducked quickly behind a tree, however, as large foot flattened a plant just a few feet to her right. The dwarven brothers watched from the tree across from her. Emi looked around the trunk to see a huge loathsome gray creature thumping along, a pony under each arm.

"Myrtle and Minty!" she hissed. "What do they want with them?"

"Supper probably." Fili shrugged. Emi's eyes widened.

"We've got to do something then!" both dwarves looked at her with equally wide eyes.

"Yes." Kili nodded. "You should!" He stepped around her, quickly releasing her hold on one of the bowls. "Mountain trolls are slow and stupid, and you're so small-"

"What? No!" the hobbit hissed.

"They'll never see you." Kili insisted placatingly.

"I am not-"

"It's perfectly safe! We'll be right behind you." Kili nodded again. Fili appeared at her other side, taking the other bowl out of her hands.

"If you run into trouble, hoot twice like a brown owl, once like a barn owl." And the blonde haired dwarf gave her a little shove forward. She stumbled a bit, muttering to herself.

"No, you don't understand! I'm _not_ a burglar! I don't even know how to hoot-" she turned around to find herself alone. She stared back at the fire ahead of her and gulped. "I'm _not_ a burglar." She repeated to herself. "But I am good at talking…" the tiny hobbit started forward, the booming voices growing louder as she approached.

"Mutton yesterday, mutton today, and blimey, if it don't look like mutton again tomorrow!" one of them grumbled.

"Quit yer griping!" the largest hollered. "These ain't sheep! This is west nags!"

"I don't like horse." The third sniffed. "Never ave. Not enough fat on them" Emi found what she was looking for. A large hollow stump.

"Well, it's better than that leathery old farmer. All skin and bone he was! I'm still picking bits of him out of me teeth."

"Pardon me good trolls!" a voice echoed around them. The large creatures jumped in alarm. "But I think we have taken some of my ponies! If you don't mind, I would appreciate it most greatly if I could have them back."

"Who's there?" the largest one demanded.

"Is it an evil spirit Tom?" the scrawny one asked.

"Don't know Bill." The large one replied, looking around suspiciously. "What are you?" he asked loudly.

"I am… most assuredly an evil spirit my good trolls!" the voice replied again. The two smallest ones whimpered slightly.

"Naw, evil spirits don't have nice manners like that." The largest one challenged. Emi cursed inwardly.

"Be that as it may, I am what I am. Return the ponies to where you found them." The voice echoed again.

"Not until you show yourself." The cook hollered, becoming a little bolder.

"No thank you!" the voice replied. "Release the ponies or I will have to use my magic on you!" this caused Bill to whimper again. But Tom just laughed.

"Come on Bert." The largest motioned to the cook. "Maybe there's more on the menu than sheep…"

"Don't Move!" the voice echoed in alarm. Both trolls halted midstride. "If you move any further I'll… I'll turn you all into toads!... and then squish you!" Emi added after forethought. The trolls narrowed their eyes suspiciously.

"Why should we believe you?" Bert asked slowly.

"Because… if you don't you'll spend the rest of your short lives hopping around on all fours!" the voice said loudly. It took a moment for the trolls to fully understand the threat.

"He's bluffing." Tom snorted.

"No I'm not!" the voice squeaked.

"He is too!" Tom hollered again. "I've never heard of no evil spirit owning ponies! Look in the bushes! He's here somewhere!" Emi squeaked as all three trolls hurried to the edge of the clearing and began pushing aside vegetation hungrily. The hobbit scrambled to her feet and shot back towards the dwarves' camp. But a large, grubby hand grabbed her firmly around the middle. Her breath rushed out of her lungs as her furry feet were lifted off the ground. She found herself right in front a huge, ugly, face. It grinned broadly.

"Blimey Bert!" it breathed foul air into her face. "Look what I've caught!" Emi struggled for breath, her ribs aching horribly, as the other two trolls bounded over. Excitement rolled off of them like little boys who had just caught a strange bug.

"What is it?" Bert looked at her quizzically.

"Lumme, if I knows!" Tom peered as well. "What are yer?"

"I'm a bur… a hobbit." Emi gasped. "Please put me down! I can't breath!"

"What's a burrahobbit?" Bert asked shrewdly, grabbing her out of Bill's hand and holding her upside-down by the foot. It wasn't much better, but a least she could breath. Which she did. Deeply. Even though the air stank horribly of troll. Of course, while she was breathing, she forgot to answer their question, and they asked another. This one, a bit less pleasant.

"Can we cook it?" Bert wondered.

"We can try!" Bill licked his lips.

"It wouldn't make more than a mouthful." Tom shook his head. "Not when it's skinned and boned."

"Maybe there's more of him about, and we can make a pie!" Bert smiled toothily.

"Are there any more of you lot sneaking about here where they shouldn't?" Tom demanded.

"Ye-no…" Emi corrected herself quickly. "No, none at all."

"What do you mean?" a troll asked.

"Just what I said!" Emi squeaked. "Oh, please don't cook me! I'm a marvelous cook myself, you see. I cook better than I cook, if you get my meaning. I'll cook you a lovely dinner as long as you don't eat me for supper!"

"Not until you tell us what you mean by ye-no." Tom's eyes narrowed.

"There's no one else!" Emi cried frantically. "There are no others here at all! I'm on my own!"

"It's lying." Bill smiled. "Hold its toes over the fire! Make it squeal!" But no sooner had the words come out of his mouth, than a crashing came from the bushes and the troll let out a yelp as steel cut into his leg.

"Drop her!" Kili yelled at the three large trolls. Emi started to cry out in joy, but stopped as her ribs stung painfully.

"You what?" Tom asked.

"I said…" the dwarf repeated, twirling his sword around. "Drop her." The trolls snarled at him and they tossed Emi through the air straight at the dwarf in an attempt to catch him defenseless. And, sure enough, Kili quickly dropped his sword to catch the hobbit flying towards him. But before the trolls could nab them both, twelve more angry dwarves came flying out of the bushes, war cries shouting and weapons brandished high. Kili quickly unburied himself and joined the fray as over a dozen dwarves began hacking away at the large brutes. Emi looked around quickly amidst the confusion, looking for a quick escape. Then her eyes caught sight of the four rearing ponies on the far side. She frowned. Then drew her eyebrows together in fierce determination. Grabbing one of the trolls' discarded weapons as she went, Emi made her way over to the makeshift pen and began sawing on the ropes. The ponies had begun to stream out quickly before her endeavors were noticed. A strangled cry leapt from her throat as she again felt large hands grab her from behind. The dwarves regrouped on one side of the clearing in confusion as the trolls huddled on the other. The company looked around in confusion, as one by one, all eyes fell on Emi. Thorin's jaw hardened.

"Emi!" Kili cried in alarm.

"No!" Thorin shouted at him, forcing him to stay back. Tom smiled triumphantly as he and Bert held onto the squirming figure.

"Lay down yer arms," he instructed. "Or we'll rip hers off!" Silence filled the clearing as the dwarves looked from Emi's frightened face, to Thorin's. Their leader was obviously considering his options. At last, he planted his sword firmly in the ground. Tom's grin widened as the rest of the dwarves did the same. They'd be eating well tonight.

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><p><strong>Okay, so I got 222 views last chapter. Which means, there ARE people reading this! But I won't know if any of those people are enjoying it because 220 of them don't review! So please, take a few moments and leave me something in the white box below! You have no idea how much it means to me!(It doesn't even have to be in English! There are translators and I'll figure it out!) But seriously, I'd love to hear all your comments and suggestions!<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Okay, yeah, I know it's been forever! Well, I got it out here finally! So enjoy!**

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><p>Emi was certain that there was something wrong with her now. After she had been shoved so rudely in one of the putrid sacks like most of the other dwarves, her ribs had begun to throb painfully. Probably bruised.<p>

"Don't bother cooking em!" Bill complained. "Let's just sit on em one by one, and squash them into jelly!"

Bert disagreed loudly. "They should be sautéed! With a sprinkle of sage." Bill considered this for a moment.

"That does sound quite nice." He agreed at last.

"Never mind the seasoning!" Tom hollered at the other two. "We ain't got all night. Dawn ain't far away, so let's get a move on. I don't fancy being turned to stone!" Emi's eyes lit up at this. She was honestly surprised she had heard it at all over the dwarfs' ramblings. The hobbit fought back the nausea from the smell and the pain and wriggled to her feet, her teeth gritted hard to keep from crying out in pain.

"Wait!" she cried hopping over towards the trolls. "You are making a terrible mistake." A dwarf hollered to her that it was a wasted effort, but she ignored him.

"Well, if it isn't little miss evil spirit." Bert rolled his eyes. "Do tell us, why are we making such a huge mistake?"

"Uh, I meant…" Emi stammered, "With the cooking… remember, I said I was a good cook."

"What about the cooking?" Bert narrowed his eyes.

"W-well… Have you got a look at them? They're filthy! I wouldn't touch them with a ten-foot pole! And you're going to eat them like that?" the hobbit winced as the dwarves began hollering angrily at her.

"What do you know about cooking dwarf?" Tom shouted at her.

"Shut up," Bert said to the other "And let the… flurgaburburrahobbit talk." Emi nodded her head graciously.

"Yes… as I was saying… the secret to cooking dwarf…" She bit her lip and glanced over at the dwarves in sacks, looking for ideas. They all glared at her angrily.

"Yes? Come on." Bert prodded her.

"It's… um…" Thorin's stormy blue eyes bore straight into her head, evidently full of hate.

"Tell us the secret!" Bert prodded further.

"Yes! I'm telling you! Stop interrupting me please!" Emi sighed exasperatedly. To her surprise, Bert fell silent. But he still watched her intently. "The _secret_… to cooking dwarf… is… to…" she glanced over at the dwarves again. "Poke their eyes out!" she decided at last! The dwarves gaped at her. The trolls look confused. "And then, smear it all over them before you eat! They're much tastier that way." Emi nodded enthusiastically. Bert grinned widely.

"Tom, get me the ladle." Her said, reaching his hand out for it. The dwarves roared in outrage.

"If I get you, you little-" Gloin threatened.

"I won't forget that!" Dwalin said, pointing at her before her turned to the other side of the spit again. Emi's smile fell as she realized what had just happened.

"What a load of rubbish!" Tom shouted over the dwarves. "I've eaten plenty with their eyes still in! Scuff em, I say! Boot and all!" Emi's eye caught the sight of a gray hat, but it disappeared quickly behind a bush. Was her mind playing tricks on her? It was hard to tell anything as little spots of light began swimming before her eyes. She tried her best to stay upright as the throbbing only continued.

"He's right!" Bill agreed. "Nothing wrong with a bit of raw dwarf!" His massive hand grabbing Bombur and held the large dwarf over his open mouth. "Nice and crunchy!"

"No wait! That one's no good!" Emi cried out quickly, momentarily forgetting the pain. "He's diseased!" Both troll and dwarf turned to look at her. "Yes, he's got… leprosy! Bits of him falling off everywhere!" Bill shrieked and dropped Bombur roughly back on top of the pile. "I-in fact…" she stammered. "They all do! Horrible! Truly! You don't know what you might catch from eating the lot. You'd get awful sick! I'm sure!"

"Sick?" Oin called out in alarm. "Is she calling us sick?"

"We're not sick!" Kili cried. "_You're_ sick!"

"And they're delusional!" The hobbit cried out over the protesting dwarves. "Don't even know they have it! It's horrible, it really is!" The trolls just glanced around at the protesting dwarves.

"_I'm _delusional? You're one to talk!"

"You think you'll get away with this?"

"Untie me and I'll wring you're neck!" Emi turned to the dwarves, a pleading look on her face. They continued to shout. Her eyes finally found Thorin's. The hate was gone, instead was just confusion. Then realization sparked. He glanced down at the dwarves by his feet and gave them a swift kick. The clearing fell silent as many heads glanced up at Thorin, then back at Emi.

"I'm… the sickest dwarf ever." Oin admitted.

"I'm horribly sick!" Kili volunteered loudly. "Falling apart all over! Whoops, there goes a foot!"

"I'm about to loose a hand!"

"Won't make it till morning."

"Awful plague!"

Emi turned back to the trolls nodding. "See?"

"What would you have us do then?" Tom growled. "Let them all go?"

"If you wouldn't mind…" Emi smiled. Tom snorted.

"What about you then?" he asked walking over to her and picking her up. "I bet you aren't sick." The troll licked his lips. The dwarves fell silent. "You'd make a tender little snack wouldn't you?"

"She wouldn't!" Heads turned to look at Thorin again, who gave Kili another small kick. His nephew got the hint and spoke up.

"She is terribly infected!" Kili said earnestly.

"You what?" Tom sneered.

"She's infested with parasites." The dwarf nodded as Fili rolled upright.

"Riddled!" he added helpfully.

"Nasty business. I wouldn't risk it." Kili agreed. Tom narrowed his eyes before turning again to the hobbit in his hand.

"You think I don't know what you're doing?" He growled before tossing her roughly to the ground. She let out a cry as pain shot through her ribs stronger than before. "This little ferret is taking us for fools!"

"Fools?" Bert frowned. But the conversation was interrupted as a tall, grey clad figure appeared atop a rock.

"Dawn take you all!" His voice boomed.

"Who's that?" Bert asked.

"No idea." Tom answered.

"Can we eat him too?" Bill wondered. But no one got to reply, as Gandalf brought his staff down on the boulder on which he stood, splitting it in half. One half dropped aside and sunlight came pouring through. The three trolls shrieked in agony as their skin began hardening under the light. They attempted to shield their faces, but it was no use. The cries died away, and all that remained were three stone statues of some very ugly trolls. The dwarves broke out into huge cheers as Gandalf clambered down from the large boulder and hurried to free them.

Emi slipped away as soon as she was out of her sack. She was just doing everything in her power to get out of the dwarves' sight before she lost the contents of last nights dinner. Pain throbbed in her chest and her ribs felt like they were on fire. The hobbit was vaguely aware of Bofur's voice calling to her back, asking if she was all right. She wasn't. But she didn't say anything. Emi just wandered into the nearby woods as the dwarves put on the rest of their many layers of clothes.

"Where did you go, if I may ask?" Thorin said to Gandalf after changing back into his fur coat and armor. The wizard turned around in surprise from his inspection of the motionless trolls.

"To look ahead." The wizard replied simply.

"What brought you back?" Thorin pressed.

"Looking behind." Came the cryptic answer. Thorin sighed.

"Could you possibly be more plain?" the dwarf lord asked. Gandalf simply chuckled before turning back to the trolls. "Nasty business. Still, you're all in one piece."

"No thanks to your burglar." Thorin raised an amused eyebrow.

"She had the nous to play for time." Gandalf rounded on the dwarf. "None of the rest of you thought of that." Thorin exhaled but nodded. "Where is the hobbit anyway?" the wizard looked around vaguely. Thorin too glanced around to find the hobbit missing.

"Ori, go check on our Halfling." He told the scholar, who nodded and bustled away.

"They must have come down from the Ettenmoors." Gandalf mused, turning back to the trolls.

"Since when do mountain trolls venture this far south?" Thorin looked at the wizard.

"Oh, not for an age." Gandalf shook his head. "…Not since a darker power ruled these lands." The wizard was lost in thought for a moment, before turning back to Thorin. "They could not have moved in daylight."

"There must be a cave nearby." Thorin said, looking around.

"Indeed." Gandalf nodded.

"Dwalin, Gloin, Nori, Bofur." Thorin called out. "Come on, we're finding a troll cave." Many dwarves cheered at this and the previously mentioned quickly grabbed their weapons and headed out. Ori returned just after the five dwarves and Gandalf had left.

"Mister Oin," his sweet voice called out. "I think you might want to come take a look at this."

"What is it lad?" Oin said, raising his earpiece.

"It's Ms. Emi." Ori frowned. "She's not feeling to well." Oin sighed and followed the younger dwarf into the woods. The remaining dwarves stood around for a moment, worried.

"Well, lads, we best get packing." Balin said at last. "Thorin will probably want to leave as soon as he finds that cave." The rest of the dwarves nodded and headed off back to camp.

Meanwhile, Oin followed Ori through the trees and brush a little. They quickly came upon Emi, who was bent over next to a tree vomiting. She was trembling horribly and her skin looked clammy.

"Oh dear." Oin sighed coming over to the ill hobbit. "Kili wasn't right about the parasites, was he lass?" Emi shook her head no before emptying out the rest of her stomach.

"Fetch her some water lad." Oin turned to Ori who nodded and left. "Now, what seems to be the matter?" Grimacing, Emi lifted up the side of her shirt to show the huge purple and brown bruises on her side.

"When the trolls grabbed me." She explained quickly. Oin nodded.

"I'll put some ointment on it and bandage it up best I can." The healer promised. "In the meantime, try to rest. That's the best thing for it." Emi nodded and slumped against the tree trunk, still quivering in fatigue. Oin brought around his satchel and began treating the discolored skin. He was finishing off the bandages when Ori returned with a waterskin. Emi took a long pull from it and handed it back, immediately feeling better.

"Are you alright Ms. Emi?" Ori asked tentatively, taking the waterskin back from the hobbit.

"Yeah…" Emi nodded and Oin stood, satisfied with his work.

"Well, we better tell Thorin." Oin said, turning to leave.

"No!" the lass shouted loudly, wincing as she did so. "Please… don't tell Thorin. I don't want to be any more of a burden than I already am."

Oin regarded the hobbit for a moment before turning away. "Very well, but as soon as it becomes a problem, I will tell him. And on your head be it if he asks why he wasn't told earlier." Emi nodded in understanding as Ori helped her up. As soon as she was on her feet, the hobbit thanked Ori and walked ahead of him. There was pain, but it was not unbearable. She could handle this.

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><p><strong>Please review! Or Pm, or whatever! <strong>**If you review, I will keep writing!** **I love to hear(read whatever) your guys thoughts and suggestions!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry, this chapter's on the shortish side. Thank you for the lovely reviews! ^-^**

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><p>Emi waited quietly, her back leaning against the stone face that was the outside of the troll cave. Her glazed eyes drifted lazily over the dwarves milling about in front of her. Half of her was vaguely aware of Dori complaining to Ori about the putrid smell of trolls. If there was, in fact, a smell, Emi could not smell it over the bile she was trying desperately to keep from rising up her throat.<p>

She wasn't used to this. Not one bit. She never got hurt back at Hobbiton. Sure, she would get sick every once in awhile, but it was never for very long. This was entirely different. Her ribs were hurting so much that it was actually _causing_ her to be sick. She feared that it was far more serious than Oin had thought.

"What's wrong with you?" a deep voice said from somewhere above her. Though it wasn't a voice she heard a lot of, Emi knew exactly whom it belonged to. She opened her eyes to take in the regal form that was Thorin Oakenshield. His slightly condescending eyes gazed down at her as he finished strapping a long sword to his back. Emi closed her eyes again, and shifted her body ever so slightly so that it wouldn't hurt when she spoke.

"I'm resting my eyes since I didn't get _any_ sleep last night. Is there a problem with that Lord Oakenshield? Or do I need your permission first?" she hissed, eyes still closed. She could feel the dwarven king's gaze on her however as she sat there. At last, she heard his hefty boots walk away heavily. She let out a small sigh of relief that resulted in her face screwing up in pain.

"Emilie." Gandalf's voice drifted to her. Emi's eyes opened, and she slowly got up to face the wizard.

"Yes?" she asked wearily.

"Here" Gandalf said, handing the Halfling a sheathed blade. "This is about your size." Emi took it from him and gazed at it for a moment.

"I have no idea how to use this." She admitted at last.

"That can be remedied." Gandalf nodded. "Besides, the blade is of elvish make, which means it will glow blue when orcs or goblins are nearby."

"You don't understand," Emi sighed. "I could never intentionally hurt anyone with this."

"And I hope you never have to." The wizard chuckled. "But if you do, remember this: true courage is not when to take a life, but when to spare one."

"That sounds like you got that out of one of those aphorism books." Emi made a face. Gandalf just smiled. Emi smiled back a few seconds before her face dropped into a frown again. Gandalf's smile disappeared as well.

"Emilie? What's the matter my dear?" he asked in slight concern.

"Mr. Baggins." She said at last. Gandalf's eyebrows rose curiously. "That's what you called me yesterday when you left in a fury." Gandalf's face fell. "I wasn't the hobbit you wanted, was I?" She gulped, unsure if she really wanted to know the answer or not.

"I will confess," Gandalf sighed heavily. "Originally, I was hoping for another hobbit, but that fell through."

"So I'm your fall back plan." Emi summed up bitterly.

"No," the wizard shook his head. "Just another plan." Emi looked up at him through hurt eyes. "And now, I believe it might be preferable to what I had in mind originally." Emi scoffed as the wizard walked away.

"Sure." She grimaced.

"Something's coming!" a voice rang across the clearing. The dwarves quickly grabbed their weapons and rushed off to face the new threat. Emi glanced over, slowly pulled her new blade out of its sheath, and followed.

The hobbit quickly found herself wedged between Fili and Ori as thirteen weapon wielding dwarves waited as something large came crashing through the bushes towards them. Everyone jumped in alarm as a huge bunny pulled sleigh came crashing through the bushes. A queer little man rode on the back screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Thieves! Fire! MURDER!" He stopped and looked around in mild surprise.

"Radagast!" Gandalf cried, coming forward with a strained smile on his face. "Radagast the Brown." _The other wizard?_ "What on earth are you doing here?" Gandalf whispered quietly, his smile disappearing.

"I was looking for you Gandalf." Radagast told the taller wizard. "Something's wrong. Something's terribly wrong."

"Yes?" Gandalf asked, prompting the other to continue. The other did not. The dwarves and Emi watched in a mix of horror and fascination as this new wizard tried to get out the thought for a good while. At last, his eyes widened.

"Oh! It's not a thought at all." He said with a slight lisp as his tongue curled slightly. "It's a silly old…" Gandalf reached to fingers tentatively into the other's mouth and pulled out a wriggling stick like bug. "Stick insect." Radagast finished happily, as Gandalf dropped the said insect into the brown wizard's hand. Emi wasn't sure if she was feeling sick to her stomach from the ribs or the wizard, but she had to fight hard to keep down more bile. She must have begun spacing out, because she felt Ori's nervous hand on her arm. She looked around quickly to see the wizards were gone. She gave Ori a quick smile to reassure the dwarf. It worked and Ori left as his brother called for him. Then Emi felt another pair of eyes on her. She looked behind her to see the steely blue eyes of Thorin only a few feet from her. Upon locking eyes, the King quickly looked away back to whatever he had been doing. Emi's brow furrowed. He wasn't suspecting that she was injured, was he? A howl distracted her from her thoughts, however.

"Was that a wolf?" Emi looked around in alarm.

"Wolf?" Bofur said, looking around warily as well. "No, that was no wolf." Emi looked at him in confusion as the dwarves eyes widened at the sight of something on the cliff behind her. The hobbit turned around in alarm as a huge wolf-like creature came hurtling at her. A large hand roughly shoved her to the side. Pain shot through Emi's chest as she hit the ground. Gasping slightly, she looked behind her quickly to see Thorin bring his new sword down on the large beast, stilling it quickly. He was standing where she had been but a moment before. Another of the beasts charged in from the other side, but Kili shot it with accuracy, leaving it easy prey for Dwalin to finish it off.

"Warg-scouts!" Thorin barked, practically picking the hobbit off the ground as pulled her to her feet. "Which means an orc pack is not far behind."

"Orc pack?" Emi cried in alarm, yanking her arm free of the dwarf's grasp. The dwarf only spared her a brief glance as she winced at her sudden movement. But Gandalf, called his attention away.

"Who did you tell about you quest, beyond your kin?" the wizard demanded.

"No one." Thorin answered immediately.

"Who did you tell?!" Gandalf shouted.

"No one I swear!" Thorin shot back. "What in Durin's name is going on?"

"You are being hunted." The wizard grimaced. But before Thorin could ask 'by who', Dwalin spoke.

"We have to get out of here." The gruff dwarf said.

"We can't!" Ori's voice came from a bit ways off. "We have no ponies! They bolted." Thorin let out a silent curse.

"I'll draw them off!" Radagast offered quickly.

"These are Gundabad Wargs!" Gandalf turned to the other wizard. "They will out run you."

"These are Rhosgobel Rabbits!" the brown wizard chirped back. "I'd like to see them try."

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><p><strong>XD Okay, that's like... my favoritest line ever!(and yes, I know favoritest isn't a word)<strong>

**Please review if you want to read another chapter! ^-^**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey there peoples! This will be the last chapter for a little while. I'm taking a short break for Nanowrimo this month and i need to focus my brain power! But don't worry! I will be back!**

**So enjoy this chapter and please review!**

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><p><em>You fool. You stupid, stuck up, prideful, fool!<em> These words repeated themselves over and over again as Emi ran after the rest of the company. Her ribs were on fire with pain, jarring agonizingly with every step. Emi knew the bright spots and shadows dancing before her eyes weren't a good thing. But she had no time to worry about it now. She had to keep running.

"Emi, No!" an arm shot out and pulled her back by the collar. Emi looked around in alarm as Thorin pulled her back behind a rock. The rest of the company huddled behind them as Radagast came streaking past, the wargs in hot pursuit. The spots in front of Emi's eyes cleared momentarily as she realized Thorin's arms were holding her to him. She peeked up to see the dwarf lord glaring intensely at the wargs as they passed. The hobbit cursed herself silently as she felt a blush creep up to her cheeks. What was she thinking about at a time like this?

Thorin quickly brushed past her as soon as the wargs were out of sight. The rest of the company followed quickly, Ori grabbing Emi by the arm on the way past and dragging her along. The young scribe shot the hobbit a concerned look, but she brushed it away. The pain was nothing. She could handle it. She hoped.

The next thing Emi was aware of was hiding behind a rock. The sound of claws scraping over stone could be heard. There was a warg right above them. With a nod from his uncle, Kili slowly drew an arrow from his quiver and notched on his bow. Then, turning quickly, he pushed off from the wall and fired at the orc. The creature let out a cry as eh fumbled to blow a horn, but Kili had already loosed another arrow that sent the beast tumbling off the rock into the dwarves' waiting blades. At last, the warg and it's rider lay still. But in the distance, an orcish cry sounded and the howls of hungry wargs followed.

"Move! Run!" Gandalf said, leading the company away. Pine trees began to dot the grassy landscape as Emi continued to struggle forward.

"There they are!" Gloin shouted, pointing ahead of them.

"There's more coming!" Kili yelled from the other side. The company came to a stop.

"Kili, shoot them!" Thorin ordered.

"We're surrounded!" Fili shouted. Emi panted next to Ori.

"Where's Gandalf?" Kili wondered aloud, shooting at the on coming forces.

"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin cursed. Sting felt heavy in her hands as a warg and his rider stalked towards her and Ori. The young dwarf launched a stone at them from his slingshot, but the pebble merely glanced off the warg's flat skull. The warg snarled as its rider grinned evilly. Emi knew she was trembling horribly. The large beast snapped its jaws at them. Ori squeaked and ran, pulling Emi after him. The two did not stop till they were a good distance behind Thorin, who pulled out Orcrist and held it at the ready.

"Hold your ground!" the dwarf lord called to the others as the wargs continued to advance. A few dwarves started in shock as Gandalf appeared from behind a rock.

"This way you fools!" he shouted to the company. And he disappeared again into the ground. A secret passage! The dwarves quickly retreated to the rock and slid down the incline. Emi followed, tripped, fell, landed on her injury, and promptly passed out.

The hobbit sleepily opened her eyes. Bright light filtered into the room. For a moment she thought she was back in Hobbiton. The comfy pillow beneath her head, the soft blanket covering her small form. She was home again. Then she opened her eyes. The sight that met her eyes was most definitely _not_ Hobbiton. It was too beautiful. And though, the hobbit had never been there, she knew exactly where she was.

Rivendell.

Emi sat up, feeling bandages around her lower chest move against the loose white shirt she was wearing. The pain was almost completely gone. She could only feel a faint throbbing if she focused on it. The hobbit looked around the room, but froze almost immediately. Her eyes were met with a cold, steely blue gaze.

Why Thorin was sitting in the only chair in the room staring at her angrily, Emi had no idea. She _did_ know however, that she was in trouble. Big trouble. She gulped nervously.

"Tell me, burglar," the dwarf's deep voice rumbled furiously. "Just what made you think that hiding your injury from me was a good idea?" For a moment, Emi was terrified. Then she wasn't.

"Well excuse me if I didn't feel like getting reprimand _again_ for something that I had no control over!" the hobbit snapped. Thorin's brow lowered. "Maybe if you weren't such a negative _jerk_ all the time, I wouldn't need to hide the fact that I got injured because of _your_ nephew's stupid ideas!"

"So you're blaming _me_ for this?" the dwarf hissed quietly, anger clearly bubbling underneath his skin. Emi fell silent. Thorin stood angrily and walked to the door. Without turning around, he spoke again. "As long as you are a member of _my_ company. You _will_ report any injuries without any hesitation. Am I understood?"

"Yes _sir._" The hobbit spat back. And she was alone. Emi let out a loud groan and flopped back against her pillow. An elf walked in presently. Emi could not help but stare at him. His features were uncannily polished.

"Ah, Emilie Brandybuck." The elf smiled. "It's good to see that you are awake. Though I'm surprised anyone could sleep with a furious dwarf glaring at them the entire time." The elf chuckled to himself as he poured a glass of water from a beautiful ornate pitcher. He handed the glass to Emi who took a grateful sip.

"I don't understand dwarves." She admitted sourly. The dark haired elf chuckled again.

"I welcome you to Rivendell Ms. Brandybuck." He smiled. "I am Elrond."

"Lord Elrond?" Emi's eyes widened in shock.

"Indeed." The elf said good-naturedly. "Your friends are already dining if you feel well enough to join them."

"Yes, of course." Emi nodded, face falling slightly.

"Please, do not push yourself." Elrond told her. "I'm sure they would understand if you were not up to it yet. Though they seemed very worried about you." Emi looked up at him.

"Really?" she asked in honest surprise. "Oh… well, yes, I'm feeling much better now." Elrond nodded quietly.

"Very well," he said. "I will send in someone to help you dress."

"Thank you." Emi smiled as the elf lord left. Emi got out of bed as another elf entered moments later. She carried a simple silken dress in one arm. It was a light purple color with silver vines along the bottom and sleeves. After dressing, Emi made her way to the balcony on which the others were dining. Several of the dwarves smiled broadly as she sat down next to Balin at one of the tables.

"Feeling better lass?" the old dwarf asked kindly.

"Much, thank you." Emi replied. Bofur leaned over from the other table.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes." He winked. Emi smiled back and turned to her plate. Salad and bread. It wasn't much, but the hobbit quickly dug in, realizing instantly how starving she was. After a few rolls, Emi was feeling much perkier and she began looking around, enjoying the other's conversations.

"Can't say a fancy elf maids myself." Kili spoke up, seeing Dwalin's gaze on him. "All high cheek bones and creamy skin. Not enough facial hair for me." Dwalin continued to glare. "Though," Kili added. "That one there's not bad." Dwalin looked up at the waiter passing by and smiled, leaning over the table.

"That's no elf maid, lad." Kili paled and looked behind him quickly. The table burst out laughing as Kili turned back around, a sheepish expression on his face.

"Very funny." He sulked as the table continued to laugh loudly. Emi could not help but chuckle, but she caught Thorin's eyes on her and the hobbit's smile immediately dropped away. Emi focused again on her food, one ear listening to Lord Elrond speak of the swords found in the troll cave. He spoke of Glamdring and Orcrist, both forged by his answers. Emi glanced down at her own sword that had been returned to her before she joined the others.

"I wouldn't bother lass." Balin whispered next to her. "Swords are named for the great deeds they do in war."

"What are you saying?" Emi asked, a little hurt. "My sword hasn't see battle?" Balin hesitated before replying.

"I'm not actually sure it is a sword." He said at last. "More of a letter opener really." Emi frowned and turned her attention back to the other conversation.

"How did you come by these?" Lord Elrond asked in surprise.

"We found them in a troll hoard on the great east road." Gandalf replied excitedly. "Shortly after we were ambushed by orcs!"

"And what were you dong on the great east road?" Elrond asked curiously. No one answered, at last, Thorin stood.

"Excuse me." He said and left. Emi's eyes followed him out, a look of concern on her face. Quietly, Emi excused herself as well and followed after the dwarf lord, Bofur's voice began singing in the background as the hobbit wandered away from the feast. The hobbit walked a few minutes before she at last came upon Thorin, overlooking one of Rivendell's many balconies. Seeing them standing there, Emi had half a mind to just turn around and rejoin the others. She was mentally punching herself as she walked forward a bit further.

"Is everything alright?" her voice asked involuntarily. Thorin looked up in surprise. _I am in so much trouble now._ Emi fretted. But, to her surprise, Thorin's expression softened slightly.

"Yes." He sighed. "It's just these elves. They ask too many questions." Emi hesitantly walked over to stand next to him, also looking out over the balcony.

"Well, you don't have to tell them the truth." She shrugged. Thorin gave her a hard stare before turning away again.

"I am a man of my word Miss Brandybuck." He said. "I will not fall into deceit of any sort." Emi looked at him.

"That's very admirable." She said at last. Thorin merely hummed in reply. "But as long as you're not hurting anyone by it, I don't see the harm in a little white lie every once in awhile."

"And that is why you are the burglar, Miss Brandybuck, and I am not." Thorin replied. Emi glared at him out of the corner of her eye. "Once you tell one lie, where will you stop?"

"So you've never lied?" the hobbit asked hotly.

"I did once…" Thorin admitted. After a silence, it was clear the dwarf king was not going to elaborate.

"Did you know that if someone says they are a liar, they are assuredly telling the truth?" Emi said, in a conversational tone. Thorin shot her an amused glance. "Because if they are a liar, they are telling the truth. But if they don't lie, then they are lying about lying and are therefore a liar."

"Then tell me, Miss Brandybuck." Thorin smiled. "Are _you_ a liar?" Emi smiled back.

"I am." She replied. Thorin nodded at her honesty. "But I'd never lie to my friends."

"And would you lie to me?" he asked quietly, raising an eyebrow at the hobbit. Emi gazed back calmly.

"No." she smiled at last. "I would not lie to you." Thorin smiled as well.

"Of course, I can never be sure if that is the truth." The dwarf pointed out. Emi grinned.

"True." She nodded. Both looked behind them in surprise as the cheers of dwarves sounded from the dining hall. "Sounds like they're making themselves at home." The hobbit laughed. Thorin chuckled as well.

"We've all been on the road often enough to know that we must do it for survival." He nodded. "It has been too long since any of us were at our homes in the Blue Mountains." Emi's smile dropped as she saw the sadness in the dwarf king's eyes.

"Ah! There you are Thorin!" Gandalf's voice called from behind them. The two turned around again to see the wizard, Balin, and Lord Elrond coming towards them. "And Emilie too, perfect. Come along, the night draws near."

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><p><strong>^-^ So I tried to have a little EmiThorin moment. Please tell me what you thought!**


	12. Chapter 12

**I am so sorry how long it's been since I last updated! And unfortunately, this chapter is on the shorter side :(**

**But please enjoy!**

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><p>"Our business in no concern of elves." Thorin spat, glaring daggers at Lord Elrond before them.<p>

"For goodness sake, Thorin, show him the map." Gandalf huffed, looking down on the dwarven king. Emi's timid eyes darted back to Thorin again as he spoke.

"It is the legacy of my people." The dwarf scowled at Lord Elrond again. "It is mine to protect, as are its secrets."

"Save me from the stubbornness of dwarves!" Gandalf threw up his hands in frustration as Lord Elrond raised an eyebrow towards the wizard. Balin stood defiantly behind Thorin. Emi wondered again why she was even here. Gandalf turned back to Thorin and sighed. "Your pride will be your downfall. You stand in the presence of one of the few in middle earth who can read that map. Show it to Lord Elrond!" The hobbit could see the hesitation on Thorin's face. At last, the dwarf lord took a step forward, raising the map out in one hand.

"Thorin, no!" Balin cried in alarm, moving to stop his king. But Thorin kept him back as he held the map out to the tall elf. Lord Elrond took the map and unrolled it.

"Erebor." The elf lord read. "What is your interest in this map?" Panic flashed in Thorin's eyes as he opened his mouth to reply. _He won't lie!_ Emi realized. She nudged the wizard next to her who spoke up quickly, probably already thinking the same thing.

"It's mainly academic." Gandalf nodded. "As you know, this sort of artifact sometimes contains hidden text." Lord Elrond turned away to study the map. As soon as his back was turned, Gandalf sent Thorin a pointed look as the dwarf lord closed his mouth again slowly. "You still read ancient dwarvish, do you not?" Gandalf spoke up again to the elf. Lord Elrond did not reply for a long while. At last, he spoke.

"Cirth Ithil." The elf murmured.

"Moon runes. Of course." Gandalf translated, sending the shorter three a small smile. "An easy thing to miss." Emi couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Well in this case, that is true. Moon runes can only be read by the light of a moon of the same shape and season as the day on which they were written."

"Can you read them?" Thorin asked anxiously. Lord Elrond began walking out of the room, still gazing at the map. Gandalf motioned for the others to follow as the elf began talking again.

"These runes were written on a Midsummer's Eve by the light of a crescent moon nearly two hundred years ago. It would seem you were meant to come to Rivendell." Lord Elrond said as the small group came out onto a large stone balcony hidden behind one of the many waterfalls. "Fate is with you, Thorin Oakenshield; the same moon shines upon us tonight." Emi watched in wonder as the elf laid the map down on a large crystal table. The clouds parted slowly, revealing a bright crescent moon hanging in the sky above them. It was beautiful. Even more so as the moonlight shone through the sheen of the waterfall, illuminating the whole crystal. The hobbit could not help but inch closer to see glowing blue runes begin to appear on the parchment that had previously appeared empty.

Lord Elrond read the runes aloud, his voice echoing off the rock. "Stand by the gray stone when the thrush knocks, and the setting sun with the last light of Durin's Day will shine upon the keyhole."

"Durin's day?" Emi asked aloud.

"It is the start of the dwarves new year." Gandalf informed her, the little hobbit's head tilting up to look at the old wizard. "When the last moon of autumn and the first sun of winter appear in the sky together."

"This is ill news." Thorin frowned. "Summer is passing. Durin's day will soon be upon us!"

"We still have time." Balin tried to reassure him.

Emi pulled a puzzled expression. "Time? For what?"

"To find the entrance." Balin explained quickly. "We have to be standing in the exactly right spot at exactly the right time. Then, and only then, can the door be opened."

"So this is your purpose," Lord Elrond's voice interrupted. Everyone turned to him, remembering that he was still there. "To enter the mountain." The elf looked around questioningly.

"What of it?" Thorin growled back. Lord Elrond regarded Thorin for a moment before answering.

"There are some, who would not deem it wise." Came the reply at last. Thorin took the map back gruffly.

"Who do you mean?" Gandalf asked the elf, frowning.

"You are not the only guardian to watch over Middle-earth." Elrond replied, sending Gandalf a harsh glare before walking off.

The air was tense as Emi followed Balin and Thorin back to the others.

"We leave in two days." Thorin told the others he entered the room where the others were carrying on merrily. They nodded in reply before going back to their conversations. Emi found herself standing awkwardly by the door. The dwarves seemed more rowdy in Rivendell, like they were trying to be as unelf-like as possible to show their disapproval of the race. It reminded Emi of back in Hobbiton. When they pillaged her pantry so thoroughly. She suddenly felt a wave of empathy for the elves of Rivendell.

Her eyes glazed as she observed the dwarves carrying on with each other loudly. She wasn't one of them. She was more like an elf when it came down to it. No one noticed as her large feet padded silently into the darkness.

Emi thoroughly enjoyed her stay in Rivendell. The fresh air made her feel whole again. The beautiful gardens and architecture were stunning and there was always more to find and discover. It almost made her forget about the quest and the dwarves entirely. Almost. She took a deep breath, looking out over the whole balcony.

"Not with your companions?" Emi turned in surprise to see Elrond walking up beside her.

"I don't think anyone will notice." The hobbit sighed as the elf raised a questioning eyebrow. "Dwarves respect strength. And that is one thing I am definitely lacking. Most of them don't even think I should be here."

"Indeed." Lord Elrond smiled slightly. "I've heard that hobbits are very resilient." Emi's eyes widened in surprise as she looked over at the elf lord.

"Really?" She asked, unsure of whether he was kidding or not.

Elrond nodded, hmming. "I've also heard they're found of the comforts of home." Emi looked down. Then laughed slightly.

"And I've heard it is unwise to seek the council of elves, for they will answer with both yes and no." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Emi immediately regretted it. She glanced up at the elf worriedly, but only saw a small smile of amusement hidden there. Emi too smiled ever so slightly, though still feeling a little nervous.

"You are welcome to stay here." Lord Elrond said, turning away. "If that is your wish." Emi swallowed, blinking slightly as the elf disappeared into the halls. She turned back to the view. She could really stay here? Did she really want to?

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><p><strong>If you are still reading this story, please review!<strong>


	13. Chapter 13

**I think this chapter should be fun. ^-^ Enjoy!**

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><p>The dwarves' stay in Rivendell went far to quickly in Emi's opinion. She sighed to herself as the small hobbit strolled away from the others again. They would be leaving in only a few hours by the cover of night, and Emi wanted just one more look before they left this paradise. The night was pleasantly cool. Breathing in a deep breath, Emi took in the fresh fragrance of the elven house.<p>

"Of course I was going to tell you." Gandalf's voice broke through the silence. Emi perked slightly, eyes scanning for the old wizard. "I was waiting for this very chance. And really, I- I think you can trust that I know what I'm doing." There he was. Over on a path below her. Lord Elrond was walking beside him.

"Do you?" The elven lord asked. "That dragon has slept for sixty years. What would happen if your plan should fail? If you wake that beast-"

"But if we succeed!" Gandalf interjected. "What if the dwarves take back the mountain? Then all our defenses will be strengthened!"

"It's a dangerous move Gandalf." Lord Elrond shot back. Emi looked behind her. Thorin stood a few paces back, his eyes following the wizard and the elf intently.

"It is also dangerous to do nothing!" Gandalf snapped back, oblivious to the onlookers. "Oh, come… the throne of Erebor is Thorin's birthright! What is it you fear?"

"Have you forgotten?" Lord Elrond looked at the wizard. "A strain of madness runs deep in that family. His grandfather lost his mind. His father succumbed to the same sickness. Can you swear Thorin Oakenshield will not also fall? Gandalf, these decisions do not rest with us alone. It is not up to you to redraw the map of middle earth…" their voices trailed off as they moved away out of sight. Emi turned to Thorin again, only to see him gone. Panicking slightly, she looked around to see him walking off towards the others. His broad shoulders slumped in defeat.

Thorin's thoughts swirled miserably. Was the elf right? Would he fall just as his grandfather had? Just like his father? ...Not that it mattered what an elf thought about his quest. But the dwarven lord was nervous about the trueness of Lord Elrond's words. What if he did succumb to the dragon sickness?

"I don't agree with him!" a slightly anxious voice echoed quietly through the hall behind him. Slowly, Thorin turned around to see Emi standing at the other end of the hall, body tense with agitation. "What Lord Elrond said…" she explained. "I don't believe it could be true. I have never met your father or your grandfather, but I do know you. Well… sort of anyway. And I know you aren't the kind of person to be corrupted by greed. And I'm absolutely certain that the rest of the company would agree with me!" A silence followed. The two just stared at each other for a moment before Emi's brain finally caught up with her mouth. It was amusing to watch her go red in practically seconds as all anger at the elf's words seeped away from her.

"I… I-I am so sorry. You probably weren't even concerned about that! What am I saying? Idiot! Idiot idiot idiot." She smacked herself on the head several times. "Well, sorry to bother you. Very sorry. I'm just being a fool. Well! Anyway! I'll be going now. Yep. Just one last walk about Rivendell before we leave. Sorry! There was no reason to tell you that. Sorry. Why am I still talking? Really sorry to take up your time. I'm sure you have more important things to be doing…" She glanced back at Thorin who was still staring at her. "Yeah… so bye!" And she turned on her heel and scurried away.

"Thank you." The hobbit halted just before she turned the corner. Very slowly, she looked back at Thorin.

"What?" She asked in confusion.

"Thank you." He repeated, holding her gaze steadily. Emi opened and closed her mouth a few times, but nothing happened. She couldn't respond. The blush came back fiercer than even and she quickly disappeared from sight.

…

"What's troubling you laddie?" Balin asked. Thorin looked over at his old friend in surprise.

"I thought everyone was asleep." The dwarven lord said.

"Aye." Balin nodded. "They are." He came to stand next to Thorin who was seated on the small half wall separating the large room from the rest of Rivendell. It provided a beautiful view. A few more plants than Balin could appreciate, but beautiful, nonetheless. "As you should be too. We'll be leaving in not to long and it's better to get safe rest while your able."

"Our burglar has not returned yet." Came Thorin's reply. Balin looked searchingly at his king and sighed.

"So this is what it's all about." He shook his white haired head. Thorin glared at him. "I'll set your mind at peace laddie. Emi's been sleeping in the gardens ever since we got here. She said there was less snoring, so she'd take her sleep while she could still get it." Thorin did not seem particularly happy with this news. "She said she'd rejoin us before we left. Don't worry."

"If she doesn't arrive, then we must leave the burglar behind." The other dwarf frowned.

"It would be no trouble to send someone to get her you know." Balin looked at him. "But that's not why, is it?"

"She likes it better here." Thorin replied, looking out over the elven haven. "She does not belong with us."

"You don't mean it like that." Balin shook his head. "Emi is not one for adventure, that is true. She feels more at home in Hobbiton or here where she doesn't have to worry about getting eaten in her sleep. But she's signed up for this quest and I don't think she'll give up now." Thorin nodded numbly.

A few hours later, the dwarves began packing quietly, an excited hush over all of them. Emi joined them as well, just as Balin had said, though it did not look like the garden had done much to aid her sleep. The hobbit stumbled around slightly in a thin haze, nodding in reply, but not uttering a word. Her eyes continued to blink steadily, as if they didn't appear to be working correctly. But she followed the dwarves as the headed out of Rivendell. The group was quiet, not wanting to wake any of their hosts.

"Be on your guard." Thorin announced as the sun began to peak over the mountains. "We're about to step over the edge of the wild. Balin, you know these paths, lead on."

"Aye." Balin nodded, walking past Thorin who had stepped to the side. The rest of the company began to follow. Thorin sighed. Emi had stopped, looking back for one last look of Rivendell.

"Lady Brandybuck, I suggest you keep up." Thorin called down to her. She looked over in surprise. That was the first time he had called her anything other than 'burglar'. She nodded earnestly and looked back at the elven dwelling one last time before sighing and turning back to follow the others.

Emi was stiff and sore. She never would have admitted it, but she missed those ponies. Traveling on foot was much harder. And although her hobbit feet were tough, Emi was used to the rolling hills of the shire. The foot of the Misty Mountains was much _much_ worse. Emi's feet were covered in cuts and bruises when Thorin finally called out that they would be camping for the night.

The hobbit dropped her pack down immediately on the ground and the rest of her followed. She let out a small groan as she picked her feet off the ground.

"I don't know how you do it!" Nori shook his head, setting down his pack next to her. "It's tiring enough walking so much _with_ shoes on."

"She's a hobbit." Ori said sweetly, as if it explained everything. And Emi counted to five, knowing that if two of the brothers were around, the third would not be far behind.

"Come along Ori!" Dori said, bustling him off. "No time to dilly dally, we've got to unpack and…" Emi stopped listening. She needed sleep now more than anything else, for some reason, her last night at Rivendell brought her no rest. Even though she had not been plagued by the dwarves dreadful snoring, she still could not sleep. Emi still did not want to consider the fact that there was another reason for her unrest. But it seemed the only explanation now.

"Did you hear what I said?" Emi's heart jumped alarmingly. The hobbit looked in surprise to see Thorin standing next to her.

"W-what?" she stammered, unconsciously inching away.

"I said that you were to help Bombur and Bofur with dinner." The dwarven lord repeated.

"R-right… Right! Yes! Sorry, I'll just…" and she jumped up and hurried to go help the two brothers with the rabbits Kili had caught on the road. Thorin let out an annoyed huff and turned away.

"What is it _now_?" Balin said from beside him. Thorin jumped ever so slightly. How did the old dwarf always manage to sneak up on him like that?

"It's nothing." The raven-haired dwarf walked away from the others setting up camp. Balin followed.

"I know that look laddie." He snorted. "So either tell me now, or wait until I beat it out of you." Thorin sent his friend a bemused glare.

"It's the burglar." He admitted at last. Balin sent a glance over at Emi who was currently teaching Bofur a better way to prepare the rabbits.

"Again?" the old advisor asked.

"We had just _finally_ been able to hold a conversation without it leading straight to a fight, and now she won't even look at me without stammering like a chipmunk." Thorin growled unhappily. Balin let out an unbelieving laugh.

"It's finally happened." The old dwarf shook his head.

"What?" Thorin asked in alarm, his face growing serious. "What's happened?" the other dwarf continued to chuckle. "Balin, tell me." He ordered.

"No lad," Balin shook his head between hearty chuckles. "You're on your own for this one." And he walked away laughing merrily to himself, leaving behind a confused and very annoyed Thorin.

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><p><strong>... Yay! <strong>

**Review if you think this chapter was worth it!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hope you enjoy! Not a super large amount of original content this time.**

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><p>Emi felt exhausted. And it wasn't just from walking miles upon miles on foot in the blazing sun. It was Thorin. Emi didn't know just what that idiot had done now, but he seemed more unbearable than ever. Always telling her to do this or that, telling her to keep up if she even dropped a smidge behind the others, constantly sending Oin over to look at the nasty cuts on her feet, which we growing in number.<p>

Not only that, but it was even painful to _look_ at him. Every time she did, her little hobbit heart would start racing like mad. Emi wasn't clueless. She'd talked to others before. Her friends had described a wild throbbing in their chests and a couple weeks later, they would be courting. But Emi was _certain_ that wasn't what was happening to her. She was _not_ falling in love. It just wasn't something that was even a possibility! There must be another reason. Maybe extreme dislike? Hate even? She hoped that was the reason. She hoped desperately.

Thorin also seemed to be in a fowl mood. And the entire company could tell. The dwarven lord insisted on starting before down, walking until it was dark and taking almost no breaks in between. Kili and Fili quickly realized that only their esteemed burglar could knock some sense into the company's leader. However, she was in the middle of trying to avoid the Dwarven king as much as possible. This, of course, did not concern the nephews in the slightest.

"Thorin!" Kili shouted through the downpour. "Emi says she's tired!"

"No I'm not!" The burglar shouted in her defense, picking up her pace slightly, trying to ignore the torrential rain and winds. Thorin stopped and looked back at the hobbit, who, as if planned, stumbled and nearly fells off the slowly growing cliff side, which how now turned into a sheer drop into nothingness. Emi waved her arms around frantically until Dwalin grabbed her by the waistcoat and hauled her back against the wall. Thorin turned away again.

"We must find shelter!" He shouted over the din. But he knew it was a hopeless cause. It was hard enough to find his own feet on the narrowing path, much less a cave to wait in safely.

"Look out!" Dwalin hollered through the din. Thorin look up in alarm to see a huge boulder hurtling towards the company. The dwarves threw themselves against the cliff face as the rock came hurtling towards them. A shock ran through the ground as stone connected with stone. The shower of rocks crashed past the harmlessly.

"This is no thunderstorm!" Balin shouted. "It's a thunder battle! Look!"

"Well bless me, the legends are true!" Bofur exclaimed watching as the mountain moved across from them. "Giants! Stone Giants!" Emi could not comprehend what happened next. The path beneath her began to shift and rock. They were moving. Half the company was… separated? They had to get back to them. The mountain was falling. They were going to die. No. They were safe. She was slipping. Cries of relief. "We're alright! We're alive!" She needed to call out to them. She could hold on. "Where's Emi?" Bofur's voice.

Emi was snapped out of her daze. Her eyes widened in horror. She was hanging on the edge of the cliff!

"There!" someone shouted. Emi felt a dwarf dive for her as her fingers slipped at last. Ori grabbed her one arm desperately, but couldn't pull her up. Both dwarf and hobbit hands were wet with rain and blood. Emi could feel her grip slipping as Bofur reached for her other arm. She reached back but her arm was too short. Why did her arms have to be so darn short? Ori let out a cry of alarm as Emi slipped further down. The hobbit was just barely aware of something swinging over the side next to her. All at once, the strain on her arm disappeared as a large hand grabbed the back of her coat and hoisted her up into the awaiting arms of the dwarves. Emi collapsed on flat rock, panting heavily. She didn't think she could stand. She glanced over to see Dwalin drag Thorin back onto the cliff. Emi's brow furrowed as she continued to gasp for breath. Why was he being pulled up? He couldn't have… risked himself for her?

"I thought we'd lost our burglar." Dwalin huffed, helping Thorin to his feet.

"She's been lost ever since she left home." The dwarven lord snapped, exhaustion evident in his voice. Emi's brow furrowed further. "She should never have come." _She is not safe here._ Thorin wanted to add. But he held the words back, gazing down on the wearied hobbit with frustration. Why did she always seem to get into trouble? He turned away. "Dwalin!" And the two of them stomped off.

A cave was found soon enough. Though Emi didn't really care. The rain could continue to pour down on her till she drowned. It didn't matter at the moment. _That idiot!_ She thought to herself, as the little hobbit curled down on her soaked bedroll. _What is his problem?_ She tried to fall asleep. _It's not like it was my fault I almost died! It could have been any of the company!_ …But it wasn't. And that was an unchangeable fact. It _hadn't_ been one of the dwarves. It had been her. _She_ had gotten in trouble again and _she_ was the one that had to be saved. It was just like the trolls. She had needed saved. And then again with the wargs. They had been forced to go to Rivendell because of _her_ injury. And now this time when she nearly fell to her death. Again and again and again, time after time, she had gotten into one mess after another. And Thorin had to pick up her slack. Again.

Emi's eyes popped open as she stared into the darkness around her. What good would she be against a dragon anyway? Might as well just save Thorin the trouble. As silently as she could, Emi rolled up her soaked bedroll, packed it up, slung her pack over her shoulder, and began to creep out.

"Where do you think your going?" Emi froze. Bofur. Of course _he_ had to be on watch. She had hoped he had fallen asleep or something. The hobbit turned around from the cave entrance, looking around to make sure the dwarf had not woken any of the others. Still sleeping. Good.

She was not aware that a pair of steely blue eyes opened at the dwarf's voice.

"Back to Rivendell." Emi sighed at last. Thorin's eyes opened slightly wider.

"No, no, you can't turn back now!" Bofur shook his head, hoping over dwarves to stand in front of her. "You're part of the company! You're one of us."

"No. I'm not." Emi bit back. "I'm just some stupid hobbit who thought she would be able to do some good! What a fool I was! Thorin was right. I don't belong here. I should never have stepped out my door."

"You're homesick." Bofur smiled. "I understand."

"Just stop." Emi frowned. "That has nothing to do with it. I'm not even supposed to _be_ here! I'm just a wizard's back up plan! I have no skill, no _nothing_. You don't have any idea what that's like! You _can't_. You're a _dwarf_. And you're used to this life. Always moving from one place to another. Nearly dying ever other day. I'm not used to that! Because I have a _life_." A silence filled the cave. "Sorry, sorry, I didn't…" Emi rubbed her hands over her face. Thorin's eyes dropped to the floor.

"No…" Bofur shook his head. "No your right. You aren't a dwarf. You're a hobbit. There's nothing that you want from this quest. You don't want jewels and riches. You prefer living things. Comforts of home." Bofur smiled at her, his eyes twinkling sadly. "You have a home to go back to." Emi frowned. "I wish you all the luck in the world." Bofur smiled, pulling her into a hug. "I really do." And he released her and nodded as she turned to leave sadly. "What's that?" Emi turned back in surprise.

"What's what?" She followed the miner's gaze to the sword at her hip. Slowly, she slid it out of its sheath. It was glowing. Blue. A loud grinding of gears sounded from somewhere below.

"Wake up." Thorin said, seeing a crack disappear into the floor. "Wake up!" The dwarves shot up in confusion and dropped.

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><p><strong>Quick thank you to those who have reviewed and given feedback! It's very helpful and I love it! The more feedback, the better the story!(hopefully)<strong>


	15. Chapter 15

Something was definitely broken. That was the first thing she knew. There was no way she should even be _alive_ after a fall like that. How was she not dead?

Emi opened her eyes. Mushrooms. That was… incredibly lucky. Her eyes darted slightly to the side, peering through a crack in the plant like growth to see the goblin that had attacked her. He was lying on his back, groaning in a pain-induced haze. Emi felt bile rise once more to her throat. She needed to get up. Find a way back to the company, or at least out of this mountain. Hopefully there was one.

"Yessss. Yesss! _Gollum, Gollum._" Emi's eyes widened as a scrawny, slimy creature emerged from the shadows. It crept around on all fours, appraising his catch. The nightmarish creature started dragging the goblin into the gloom from which it had come from. Hitting the dying thing with a stone when it tried to move.

Emi lay motionlessly on the ground until the thing was out of sight. Then she pushed herself out of the concealing patch of mushrooms. Her arm shot with pain as she moved. The hobbit gritted her teeth and tried to ignore it. Now was not the time to worry about it. She had to get out of here. But how?

She grabbed her sword from underneath a mushroom next to her, thankful that its blue glow had been concealed. Emi started forward and stopped again as something caught her eye.

Perhaps it was fate. Perhaps luck. Most likely, it was the will of the ring. But Emi saw it. A simple little thing that reflected the light of her letter opener. She just had to pick it up. Emi would have considered what she was doing, but a cry from the creature before startled her severely. She slipped the curious ring in her waistcoat pocket and started forward again.

"Too many boneses, Precious! Nothing of flesh!"

"Shut up! Get its skin off. Start with the head." Emi frowned as she crept forward. Through the gloom, she could see a still body of water under the rock.

_The cold hard lands, _

_They bites our hands,_

_They gnaws our feet!_

_The rocks and stones_

_Are like old bones,_

_All bare of meat!_

_Cold as death_

_They have no breath_

_It's good to eat!_

What a horrid song. That was all Emi could think. Until the creature looked up and Emi quickly ducked behind the rock, hiding the glow of her sword. Her arm twinged again in pain at being jostled about.

Another commotion sounded from the rock. Emi watched in horror as her sword's light flickered out. She was plunged into darkness. Then her hair stood on end. Cautiously, she looked up and found herself staring into a pair of huge pale, almost glowing eyes. A deep-throated gurgle sounded from the things throat. And suddenly, the thing of skin and bones hopped down in front of her, a huge smile on its face.

"Bless us and splash us, my precioussssss! I guess it's a choice feast. At least a tasty morsel it would makes us! _Gollum_." Emi stared wide-eyed as the thing crept towards her, then stopped as it found a sword point at its throat. It made the horrid coughing sound and backed up slightly as the hobbit stood shakily.

"W-who… are you?" she clenched her jaw.

"What iss he, my preciouss?" the thing hissed, more to himself than to Emi.

"I am… Emilie Brandybuck a.. a hobbit. I-I… have l-lost my d-dwarves… my wizard… and my way." She finished, tilting her head to one side.

"It's… lost." The Gollum thing smiled.

"Yes." Emi sighed. "Yes I am lost. I don't know where I am, and I don't want to know. I just want to get unlost as soon as possible!"

"What has it got in its handses?" The Gollum asked, staring distastefully at the sword.

"This is a sword." Emi said quickly as the creature moved forward again. "And I will use this!" she pointed it further at him "…if I have to!" The Gollum hissed back. "Look! Just show me the way out of here and I'll be on my way!"

"Ooh! We knows! We knows safe paths for Hobbitses! Safe paths through the dark!"

"Shut up!" Emi gulped and blinked slightly.

"I… didn't say anything." She frowned.

"Wasn't talking to you!" it snapped, turning away again.

"But yes, we was, precious, we was."

"Look." Emi sighed. "I don't know what your game is, but-"

"Games?" The Gollum leapt atop a rock, beaming. "We loves games, doesn't we precious? Does it like games? Does it? Does it like to play?" Emi tilted her head to the side again.

"…Wait …what?" she shook her head, trying to clear it.

"What has roots as nobody sees, is taller than trees, up, up it goes, and yet never grows?" Emi stared blankly at the creature. Not riddles. Anything but riddles.

"The… a… a mountain?" she asked aloud. The creature laughed loudly, and for a moment, Emi thought she had gotten it wrong.

"Yess, yess, oh let's have another one! Yes, come on, do it again. Do it- do it again. Ask us."

"No! No more riddles. Finish him off. Finish him now! _Gollum Gollum_." The thing charged at her again.

"Wait! Wait!" she cried in alarm. This thing may want to eat her like pretty much everything else she had met so far, but it could be reasoned with. It was… sophisticated. Or used to be at any rate. "I'll play a game with you! And if I win… you show me how to get out of here? Alright?" the creature backed away and looked at her with large hopeful eyes.

"And if it looses precious? What then?"

"Well if it _looses _precious, then we _eats_ it." Emi stared at it motionless. It repeated itself in a simpler way. "If Hobbits looses, we eats it whole."

"I guess that seems… fair." Emi gulped, standing and sheathing her sword, which was hard to do without hurting her arm further. Once her sword was back in her sheath, the creature spoke up.

"Well, Brandies first." Emi turned to it in surprise.

"Oh… well… let's see. Thirty white horses, on a red hill. First the champ, then they stamp, then they stand still."

"Chestnuts! Chestnuts!" Gollum grinned. "Teeth! Teeth is the answer! But we… only has six." And he proceeded to show them off. "Our turn."

"Voiceless it cries, Wingless mutters, Toothless bites, mouthless mutters."

"Wind." Emi said quickly, which quite impressed herself. And put her in a very good mood, and Gollum in a very bad one. And so it was Emi's turn. "An eye in a blue face saw an eye in a green face. 'That eye is like to this eye' said the first die, 'But in a low place not a high place'." Emi watched carefully as Gollum thought for a long hard time.

"Sss, sss, my preciousss." He said at last. "Sun on the daisies in means, it does." Emi let out a sigh of annoyance. She was quite hoping she had stumped him on that one, for she was running quickly out of riddles.

"Cannot be seen, cannot be felt, cannot be heard, cannot be smelt. It lies behind stars and under hills, and empty holes it fills. It comes first and follows after, ends life, kills laughter." Unfortunately for Gollum, and very fortunately for Emi, she had heard this kind of thing before and the answer was surrounding her.

"Dark." She answered. Gollum snarled.

"Very clever, Hobbitses, very clever." He started approaching her again, and the hobbit had to quickly pull out her sword.

"Ah, ah, ahhhhhhh- a box! Without hinges, key, ooooooor lid! Yet, golden treasure inside is… hid?" Emi watched anxiously as the creature stressed loudly in confusion. "Well? What is it?" she asked, her impatience getting the better of her. "The answer's not a kettle boiling over, as you seem to think from the noise you're making."

"Give us a chance, let it give us a chance my precious!" the creature shook his head.

"Well?" Emi asked after a long moment.

"EGGSES!" the creature shouted, startling Emi severely. "Yes, Grandmother taught us to suck them yesssss precious." Emi sighed. "Alive without breath, as cold as death, never thirsty, ever drinking, all in mail, never clinking." Emi frowned as walked off a little in thought.

"Is it nice, my precious?" Gollum wondered aloud, grinning to himself. "Is it Juicy? Is it scrumptiously crunchable?" Emi felt a pair of hands around her next and turned around in shock, swinging her sword and almost beheading the creature behind her.

"Half a moment!" Emi cried. "I gave you a good long while!"

"Quickly, quickly!" it hissed.

"Fish!" the hobbit shouted as the thought sprung into her head. Gollum was dreadfully disappointed, but Emi wasted no time in asking the next question. "No-legs lay on one-leg, two-legs sat near on three-legs, and four-legs got some." Gollum grinned deviously.

"A fish precious. On a table. Man at the table on a stool. The cat has the bones." Emi cursed herself silently. Why did she have to ask it right after the fish riddle?

"This thing all things devours." Gollum whispered, disappearing into the dark. "Birds, beasts, trees, flowers." His voice echoed around the cave "Gnaws Iron, bites steel, grinds hard stones to meal. Slays king, ruins town, and beats high mountain down." Emi paled. This riddle was not easy. That's why Gollum had picked it. For the creature was getting hungry and the game had gone on long enough. Emi sat down on the ground, her tattered skirt billowing out around her slightly. And she thought.

She thought for a good long time, then thought some more. And she continued to think as the creature's big pale eyes appeared again across from her.

"It's stuck." The thing whispered gleefully. A nagging voice in the background. Gollum crept forward. "Brandies is stuck." Emi shook her head and looked away. It inched closer, one arm reaching out for her. "Tell us the answer now!"

"Time! Time!" Emi shouted. Very luckily too might I say. For she had meant to say 'Give me some time!' but in her frazzled state, 'Time' was all that came out. And time also happened to be the answer. And she had not realized it at first until Gollum hissed loudly and threw a fit. Emi coughed. "Wasn't really that hard."

"Last question." Gollum rounded on her. "Last chance."

"Oh.. uh…"

"Ask us." Gollum smiled as the hobbit got up and walked away in thought. She couldn't think of any more riddles. "ASK US!"

"Shut up and let me think!" Emi shouted back. Surprisingly, the creature did. For a moment. And in that moment, Emi's hand went to her pocket, and felt a ring that she had picked up and quite forgotten about. A curious little thing. So simple, yet…

"What… have I got in my pocket?" she wondered to herself. However, she had said it out loud and Gollum thought she was talking to him.

"That's not fair." The creature said indignantly. "It's not fair! It's against the rules!" he threw a rock that he had picked up in disgust. Emi snorted slightly. "Ask us another one!"

"No. I have given my question, and you must answer it. What have I got in my pocket?" Gollum snarled and jumped up on a rock, making Emi take a few steps back.

"Three guesses, precious. It must give us three." Gollum demanded, holding up to fingers.

"Very well." Emi sighed. "Guess away."

"Handses!"

"Wrong!" the hobbit shouted back, who had fortunately just taken her hand out of her pocket. "Guess again!"

"Ah, ah, ah… Knife! Stupid!" Gollum smacked himself.

"Wrong again!" Emi grinned. "Last guess!"

"String!" the creature shouted, and spun around. "Or nothing."

"Both wrong." Emi snorted. Gollum collapsed to the growl, howling in defeat. "Well then? Show me the way out! You promised, remember?"

"Did we say so precious?" Gollum sat up again. "… What has it got, in its nasty little pocketses?"

"That doesn't matter. Show me the way out."

"Patience precious. Show nastieses the way out. Yes. But first we gets some things. To help us precious."

"Well hurry up then!" Emi snapped as the creature slipped away into the darkness. Emi stood in the darkness quite alone. And she very often thought that Gollum had gone back on his deal. Which, of course, he had every intention of doing. But he would be back.

"Where iss it!" Gollum's howl echoed through the cavern, making Emi jump considerably. "Where iss it? Lost it is, my precious! Lost! Lost! Curse us and crush us, my precious is lost!"

"W-what's the matter?" Emi called out timidly. "What have you lost?"

"Mustn't ask us!" the voice echoed back in clear distress. "Not it's business! It's Lost!"

"Well so am I!" Emi huffed. "You promised to show me the way out! So come along! You never guess my last question! You promised!" she was getting equally distressed now.

"Never guessed!" Gollum hissed, sounding closer now. "What… has it got in its pocketses? Tell us that. It must tell us first." Emi gritted her jaw.

"Answers are to be guessed, not given."

"But it wasn't a fair question." Gollum sulked. "Not a riddle, precious, no." Emi knew she had to stay on top of the conversation.

"Well, if it's a matter of ordinary questions, then I asked one first." The hobbit said firmly. "What have you lost? Tell me that!"

"What has it got in its pocketses?" The sound was even louder and sharper now. And Emi looked in alarm to see the pale eyes drawing closer again from the water.

"What have you lost?" Emi persisted. The eyes were coming swifter. And Emi wasn't going to wait for them to come any closer. She turned around and ducked blindly into a passage.

"What has it got in its pocketses?" the sound came from right behind her. Though it really was not the moment, Emi had to wonder. What _had_ she got in her pocket? Her hand shoved quietly into her pocket as she felt the cold smooth ring as it quietly slipped onto her finger. Then she stumbled and fell. And Gollum was on her. And then passed her. The creature hadn't stopped at all. He passed by, taking no notice of her, muttering to himself all the while. Emi stared after him in confusion. He could see in the dark, so what did that mean? Painfully, she got up, her arm hanging limply at her side now. Her sword was once again glowing slightly, so she sheathed it. Then the hobbit followed Gollum. It seemed the only reasonable thing to do. As she did so, she heard it mumbling to himself.

"Curse it! Curse it! Curse it!" it hissed. "Curse the brandies, it's gone! What has it got in its pocketses? Oh we guess precious, we guess. It stole it precious. My birthday present. The hobbitses has got it in its pocket! It's tricksey precious. It knows the way in, it must know a way out!" Emi's ears perked. "It's off to the back door! To the back door, that's it."

"The goblinses will catch it then. It can't get out that way precious!" the thing conversed with itself.

"_Gollum_. Yes, but if it's got the present, our present precious, then goblinses will get it, _Gollum_! They'll find it! They'll find out what it does! We shan't ever be safe again precious! No."

"Then stop talking precious, and make haste! We must stop the Brandies precious! Quickly! Go, go!" Emi followed just barely as the creature scampered quickly over rocks, counting turns as it went. Emi could not help but smile to herself. This thing was leading her out. She would find her way out.

And then Gollum stopped, and jumped back behind a boulder. Emi worried that it was goblins, but then a gray man appeared in the path before them, shouting to someone, who turned out to be the dwarves. They looked strange. Like an echo were they were as they moved, wisps coming off of them like smoke. It was very odd. She started to call out to them and stopped as she realized there was still Gollum in between her and them.

Her hope seemed to slip away as each dwarf passed by. Until it was silent.

Gollum looked around. There was no one. No Brandies. No birthday present. Wait, a sound. But he didn't see any one, no precious. Scraping. His precious. Something hard whacked into his head and sent him sprawling on the ground. He grasped around desperately.

"Brandies! Thief! Curse it and crush it! We hates it FOREVER!"

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><p><strong>:D<strong>

**Please review!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Enjoy!**

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><p>"And Bombur. That makes thirteen." Gandalf finished. "Where's Emilie? Where is our hobbit? Where is our hobbit?" the wizard repeated louder. The little creature was nowhere to be seen.<p>

"Curse the Halfling!" Dwalin shouted. "Now she's lost!"

"I thought he was with Dori!" Gloin accused.

"Don't blame me!" the gray haired dwarf snapped back.

"Well, where did you last see him?" Gandalf sighed, panicking slightly.

"I think I saw her slip away when they first collared us." Nori offered hesitantly.

"What happened exactly? Tell me!" the wizard implored. It was then, that the previously silent Thorin spoke up.

"I'll tell you what happened. Lady Brandybuck saw her chance… and she took it." He turned away angrily. "She's thought of nothing but her soft bed and her warm hearth since she first stepped out her door! We will not be seeing our hobbit again." His voice dropped. "She is long gone." There was a silence as the words sunk in. Gandalf looked around desperately. It couldn't be true. Hobbits didn't give up. Emi couldn't have given up… could she? The silence continued unbearably. The dwarves felt lost. Unsure what to do. They looked to Thorin for guidance. To tell them what they should do next. But his back was turned to them, his shoulders slumped and his head hanging low.

"Do you think so little of me?" A tiny, hurt voice spoke. Everyone spun in surprise to see a small, bloody hobbit standing before them.

"Emilie Brandybuck!" Gandalf cried, a smile appearing instantly. "I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life!"

"Emi! We'd given you up!" Kili laughed in relief.

"How on earth did you get past the goblins?" Fili asked in wonder.

"How indeed." Dwalin nodded. But in the silence, the company realized that Emi was not paying attention to them at all. Tears perched in the corners of her eyes as she stared at Thorin. The dwarven king stared back, unsure what to do. Slowly, Emi staggered towards him until there were just a few feet between them.

"You really think of me as so weak to give up?" she asked quietly. Though the entire company could still hear her. Thorin hesitated a moment before replying.

"I overheard your conversation with Bofur back in the mountains." He said. "If that wasn't giving up, then tell me. What is?" Emi's jaw dropped open slightly. Everyone stared as the hobbit took two steps up to the dwarven lord and, with her good hand, slapped him. Hard.

"I was leaving because _you_ were being such a JERK!" she shouted. Thorin turned back to her slowly, eyes blazing with fire. "I didn't _want_ to leave! I had already been almost eaten at least _twice_ and I'm not about to give up so quickly! But YOU made it so _obvious_ that _I_ was unwanted! So I thought I'd do you all a favor and LEAVE!" Everyone stared at the hobbit in shock. But she wasn't done. "Well I'm soooo sorry for thinking that I was unwelcome! I guess I misread all the times you yelled at me, and complained at me, and glared at me, or treated me like dirt! How _stupid_ of me to think that maybe it would be better if I just left!"

"So you're blaming _me_ for this?" Thorin hissed dangerously.

"Yes." Emi said firmly, stepping back defiantly. "Yes I am." The company exchanged worried glances. Their little hobbit friend was going to be killed for sure if one of them didn't step in. However, none of them had to. For just then, a haunting howl echoed through the trees. Everyone turned to look back the way they had come, including Emi, her defiance and bravado gone, reducing her to a tiny, trembling, injured creature.

Balin sighed loudly. "Out of the frying pan,"

"And into the fire." Gandalf finished. "Run. Run!" And they were running again. Emi could barely stay on her feet as she tripped after the company. Her anger and adrenaline was gone. And she was tired. Tired and in pain and she just wanted to lie down and hope the wargs just ignored her like the goblins had. That actually sounded like a good idea, then Balin grabbed her by the arm and pulled her along after the others. Now she didn't have a choice. She would keep running until the orcs gave up or there was nowhere left to run.

Which happened a lot sooner than expected. They had run straight to the edge of an overhang. And there was no other way to go.

"Up into the trees! All of you!" Gandalf shouted. And the dwarves began launching themselves into the trees with a skill Emi would have been surprised by if she weren't defending herself from one of the faster wargs that had already caught up with them.

The rabid creature charged at her and threw it's own head straight into Emi's sword. "Climb Emilie!" Gandalf called to her. She tried to grab her sword and run, but the thing wouldn't budge.

"They're coming!" someone shouted. Emi looked in alarm to see the wargs bounding towards her. In a flash, she was gone. No one noticed her disappearance. Everyone assumed she was in one of the other trees. Besides, they had more important things to worry about. Like the large white warg stalking to the front of their attackers. And more importantly, the pale orc that rode it.

"Azog." Thorin breathed, his eyes wide with shock.

"Nuzdigid?" the pale orc spoke slowly. "Nuzdi gast? Ganzilig-i unarug obod nauzdanish, Torin undag Train-ob." Thorin shook his head.

"It cannot be." Azog lazily spoke to his warriors.

"Kod, toragid biriz." He pointed to Thorin. "Worori-da!" At his command, the wargs leapt forward, powerful jaws snapping at the lower branches. Desperately trying to get a taste of dwarves. No one noticed the one warg who turned to the side, sniffing the air. The trees groaned. Their branches snapped and fell to the ground one by one. The dirt loosened and the trees began leaning. And then they began to fall. And it was all the dwarves could do to jump to the next one, and the next, until all thirteen dwarves and one wizard were in one tree, on the very edge of the cliff.

"Fili!" Gandalf shouted. The wizard tossed down a flaming pinecone, which was immediately thrown at the approaching wargs. The dwarves cheered as pinecone after pinecone was thrown down, driving away their enemies. It seemed like they would get out of this yet! Until the tree gave a sudden lurch. The cheering stopped as everyone grabbed for the branches in confusion. And the tree slowly began leaning further and further, until it halted. The tree stopped horizontally and suspended over open air. No one noticed the warg getting pelted with rock after rock over on the side.

They did notice Thorin, standing on the tree, hate filled in his eyes. Then he charged. Straight at Azog. Orcrist was raised in one hand, and the oaken branch over his other arm. And Azog leaned forward and his warg leapt. Thorin took the blow straight to the chest and collapsed to the ground. The dwarf struggled to his feet and turned around just in time to get the pale orc's mace right in his jaw. He was knocked back to the ground.

"Nooo!" Balin shouted, trying to get up. Azog roared in triumph as his warg fastened its teeth firmly around Thorin. Dwalin tried to swing onto the truck, but the branch snapped and he swung back down.

"Thorin!" he shouted. Mustering the last of his strength, Thorin swung the hilt of his sword into the white warg's muzzle. In reward, he was tossed roughly against the rocks, his sword flying out of his reach. No one noticed the tiny sword disappear from a dead warg's skull. Azog tilted his head back to the nearest orc.

"Biriz torag khobdudol." He said slowly as the orc smirked and strolled over to the fallen dwarf. Thorin watched with fearful eyes. He tried desperately to grab Orcrist, but it was out of reach. The orc raised his sword, smirking down at the dwarf. _This is the end._ Thorin thought, as his sight began slipping away in darkness. The last thing he saw was a tiny little hobbit tackle the orc, her dark brown hair flying. Then everything went black. _That reckless burglar._

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><p><strong>So I'm a little worried about this chapter. It didn't seem to flow right in my opinion. If you guys could give your opinion, that would be very helpful!<strong>


	17. Chapter 17

**Please enjoy this chapter! It's short, but a lot happens.**

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><p>She could barely keep her eyes open. Emi was exhausted. She could scarcely feel her injured arm anymore, and the hobbit doubted strongly that it was a good thing. The feathers beneath her were so soft. Emi just wanted to lie down and go to sleep. The eagles had come none too soon. But the hobbit could not sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, they flew open again searching for the leader of the company. He had not moved since the eagles came. He couldn't be… dead?<p>

The eagles began spiraling through the air around a tall rocky pillar. The top of which was vaguely shaped like a bear. Thorin was set down first, and Gandalf followed right after, rushing over to the injured dwarf. The rest of the dwarves crowded around worriedly, Emi however, hung back. The harsh words she had said to him earlier rushed back. She had been so rude.

"It's alright." Gandalf spoke up, interrupting her thoughts. "Emilie is here. She's quite safe." Emi looked up in confusion to see Dwalin and Kili help a shaky Thorin to his feet. Relief washed over her. Then it disappeared.

"You!" Thorin barked, shaking the others off of him. He was staring straight at Emi. "What were you doing? You nearly got yourself killed!" Emi opened her mouth to snap back, but no words came out. Tears began misting over her eyes as the dwarf stomped towards her. "Did I not say that you would be a burden? That you would not survive in the wild?" He was inches from her now and finished in a low voice. "That you had no place amongst us?" Emi swallowed, trying hard not to break down right then and there. Resisting the urge to push the oaf right over the cliff edge, or to jump herself.

A weary smile broke onto Thorin's face. "I have never been so wrong in all my life." He moved towards as Emi's brain and heart momentarily shut down. Her eyes stared wide and unblinking, staring at Thorin's face right in front of hers. His eyes were closed, but the corners were crinkled in a smile. One hand held the side of her head tightly, as his other hand snacked around her waist, pulling her to him. His lips, pressed against hers.

She should have been angry with him. That was the only logical thing to do. To push him off the cliff edge as she had first intended. But she was so tired. And they had just been through so much. And it felt so… right.

So slowly, Emi let herself relax into his embrace. Her eyes dropped close and she returned the kiss.

Both of them were covered in blood, those of their enemies, and their own. Both were exhausted, barely staying on their feet.

When the cheering of the dwarves began to quiet down, and Thorin and Emi realized that it had been there in the first place, they pulled apart. Both stared into each other's eyes for a moment. Thorin was smiling. Emi was still slightly bewildered, her eyes still a little wider than usual.

"I am sorry I doubted you." Thorin apologized quietly. Emi just made this little squeaking sound and nodded. At last, she found her words again.

"N-no, I would have doubted me too." She admitted. "I'm not a hero! Or warrior… not even a burglar." She gave Gandalf a look before turning back to Thorin. It then occurred to her just how close the two of them were. Apparently, Thorin realized this too, as his brain caught up with what he had actually just done. Both of them stepped away from each other quickly, cheeks flushing with embarrassment. Thorin coughed awkwardly and the company grinned annoyingly. Emi quickly turned her attention to the leaving eagles. It was truly a magnificent sight. The company watched as well as the large elegant birds disappeared over the mountains.

Emi snuck a peek at Thorin however, to see him walking away, his eyes transfixed on the horizon. Emi followed his gaze to see a single solitary peak, towering in the distance.

"Is that… what I think it is?" she asked aloud. The whole company turned as one to see what she was talking about. Their eyes widened.

"Erebor." Gandalf nodded. "The Lonely Mountain. The last of the great dwarf kingdoms of Middle earth."

"Our home." Thorin spoke. The emotion made his voice almost raw sounding. A tiny bird flapped past them, chirping merrily.

"A raven!" Oin exclaimed merrily. "The birds are returning to the mountain!"

"That, my dear Oin, is a thrush." Gandalf corrected the aging dwarf.

"Well we'll take it as a sign." Thorin spoke up, casting a glance over at Emi and smiling. "A good omen." Emi blushed slightly, but smiled back.

"You're right." She nodded, sighing in relief and looking towards the mountain again. "I do believe the worst is behind us."

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><p><strong>So yes, I know it seems a little sudden, but that'll be dealt with in the next chapter. I promise!<strong>

**Review if you think this chapter was worth it!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Welcome to the second movie! Please enjoy!**

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><p>Once again, Emi's thoughts ran away from her to frolic under fanciful whims and daydreams. Most often, or more accurately, always involving a certain raven-haired dwarven king. It was getting out of hand.<p>

The hobbit snapped back to reality as she spotted the orc pack that had been right on their tails for a few days now. The large pale orc stopped and surveyed the surroundings. Emi's eyes widened and she quickly ducked behind a boulder, wincing as her arm was jostled. The bothersome thing was still giving her trouble. It didn't help that it had gotten infected. Oin helped as best he could with the limited supplies, but her arm had grown increasingly stiff. At least she could feel it again. Though barely, and what she did feel was pain.

Again, she was drawn out of her thoughts by the sight of someone else wandering about in the strange twilight that lit the rocky steeps of the Misty Mountains. But this time, it was certainly no orc. It was a huge bear, staring after the orcs. Emi's blood ran cold. That was not a normal bear. She did not hesitate and dashed away down the path back to where the rest of the company was resting.

She was out of breath when she neared the little clearing. In all probability, she shouldn't have gone out to scout. But she was the quietest, and the hobbit found the company of dwarves increasingly insufferably.

That wasn't true. Most of the dwarves were fine. They were just scared and tired. As expected from those on the run. It was just one dwarf that had been getting on her nerves.

Thorin Oakenshield.

The hobbit and the dwarf had barely shared more than four words since the morning atop the Carrock. Emi had understood that the… kiss… had been spur of the moment. That it was just done on impulse and that the dwarf held no feelings for her. She couldn't say she really felt much for him either… Maybe… Hopefully.

…But that was still no reason to act like it never happened! They had not talked at all about that… event. Or even the harsh telling off Emi had given the dwarf lord hours before. Maybe he still held a grudge? Maybe that… kiss… atop the Carrock, was just a dwarven custom for saying you're forgiven? That must be it. It's the only thing that made sense. But the other dwarves certainly weren't asking like it was just that.

_Focus Emi_. The hobbit snapped to herself mentally as she neared the others. She padded down the path through the gap in the cliffs.

"How close is the path?" Dwalin asked before she had even passed into the opening with the others.

"Too close." She replied immediately. "Just a couple of leagues, I'd say. But that's not the worse of It." the dwarves tensed.

"Have the wargs picked up your sent?" Dwalin asked angrily.

"N-no not yet." Emi said. "But no doubt they will. But we have another problem."

"Did they see you?" Gandalf asked. Emi turned to him in confusion. "They saw you." The wizard frowned.

"No! That's not it!" Emi sighed exasperatedly. Why did they all assume she had messed up?

"What did I tell you?" Gandalf smiled at the dwarves. "Quiet as a mouse. Excellent Burglar material." Several of the dwarves chuckled, nodding at her in appreciation.

"Will you all just _listen_ to me?" the hobbit cried at last. The company fell silent. "I'm trying to tell you, there is _something else_ out there!" That shut them up pretty quickly.

"What form did it take?" Gandalf asked slowly. "Like a bear?" Emi looked at him, then did a small double take.

"… Yes. Yes, exactly like a bear, but bigger! Much, much bigger."

"You knew about this beast?" Bofur asked incredulously. The wizard did not answer.

"Gandalf?" Emi asked quietly.

"I say we double back." Bofur turned to the others.

"And be run down by a pack of orcs." Thorin snorted. Emi glanced over at the dwarven leader.

"There is a house." Gandalf spoke hesitantly. "Not far from here, where we might take refuge."

"Whose house?" Thorin sighed exasperatedly. The stress and weariness evident in his voice. "Are they friend or foe?"

"Neither." Gandalf replied. "He will help us, or he will kill us." Emi paled.

"What choice do we have?" Thorin frowned. Everyone jumped as a loud roar sounded across the rocks. Emi knew that roar. She had heard it only moments ago. It was the bear.

The wizard pulled a face. "None."

And they were running again. Emi hated all this running. She was absolutely sick of it. But that didn't stop her as the sounds of a large beast crashing through the brush behind them.

"Come on!" Gandalf shouted. "This way quickly!" trees blurred past her vision.

"Bombur come on!" Into a large field.

"To the house! Run!" A large hedge loomed on the horizon.

"Come on! Get inside!" through the gate and into a wooded, flower filled, pasture. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the huge bear charging after them.

"Open the door!"

"Quickly!" Emi pushed after the dwarves, slipping through the crack in the door before the dwarves began closing it again. A huge snapping maul tried to wedge through the door.

"Come on lads!" Dwalin hollered. There was a collective sigh as soon as the door swung shut and the par slid over the door. Emi shook as the adrenaline slowly wore off.

"What _is_ that?" Ori asked incredulously.

"That…" Gandalf said. "Is our host." Emi looked up in horror. "His name is Beorn, and he is a skin changer." The hobbit could not help but think that the wizard seemed far too excited about this. "Sometimes he is a huge black bear; sometimes he is a great strong man. The bear is unpredictable, but the man can be reasoned with. However," the wizard turned to those who had begun to explore the little home and raised his voice ever so slightly. "He is not overly found of dwarves."

"He's leaving." Ori announced.

"Come away from there!" Dori pulled him away. "It's not natural! None of it. It's obvious. He's under some dark spell."

"Don't be a fool." Gandalf barked. "He's under no enchantment but his own. Now get some sleep, all of you. You'll be safe here tonight." Emi looked around for some place to get some rest as the dwarves plopped down in the hay amongst the ponies. "I hope." Emi swallowed. Surely, she hadn't been meant to hear that. Had she?

Her skin prickled and she looked in alarm to see a pair of steely blue eyes on her. Emi swallowed as she looked back at Thorin from across the room. Feeling a slight heat rise to her cheeks, Emi turned away and plopped down in the hay. Gandalf was right. She should get some sleep while she could.

But sleep would not come. Even when all the others had fallen into a deep and safe slumber for once in too long. Emi, however, was not to be so lucky. She lay quietly for what felt like hours, but still daylight would not come. So the hobbit let her mind wander. As long as it stayed far away from a certain dwarf king. As it happened, Emi found herself drifting to her pocket. And more importantly, it's contents. The hobbit looked over her shoulder warily. She hadn't seen Gandalf fall asleep, but the wizard was nowhere in sight.

Letting out a small sigh of relief, Emi reached a hand into her pocket and pulled out the small curious thing. The golden ring. Her little ring of invisibility. She smiled to herself. _Imagine that._ She thought to herself. _Invisible! Now you see me,_ she slipped on the ring. _Now you don't!_ She slipped the ring off again, chuckling to herself. She looked over her shoulder again. That had been a little reckless. Thankfully, no one seemed to have seen her. The hobbit turned back to the ring. It was strange when she was invisible, but it was to be expected. _This could prove extremely useful_. She smirked. _Very useful_.

The dark haired hobbit no longer felt tired as she considered her newfound ability. Finally, she had a use to the company. Since she seemed to be useless before. And now she could fight! She may not have much skill with a sword, but it was impossible to fight what one could not see.

All the while, as these thoughts floated through her head, she stroked the small shiny ring. It was precious, wasn't it?

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><p><strong>Next chapter is Beorn! That should be interesting...<strong>

**Review if you think this chapter was worth it.**

**SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!**

**I had an Idea for another story recently. **

**Unfortunately, it requires over 20 different dwarrowdams. Even more unfortunately, I cannot come up with that many different dwarrowdams.**  
><strong>That's where you come in.<strong>  
><strong>If you would like to PM me or review with a dwarrowdam of your own creation, that would be AMAZING!<strong>  
><strong>I need dwarrowdams of all shapes, sizes, backgrounds, and ages. Also, there is a possibility that not all will be used! But please, the more options the better! Be as detailed as you want!<strong>  
><strong>And thank you for your time!<strong>

**- the BugSlayer**


	19. Chapter 19

Emi awoke to something landing on her face. And it was buzzing. Naturally, the hobbit immediately sprung into a sitting position, swatting the large thing off her face. Her eyes blinked in confusion as large bumblebees came through the blurriness of sleep. Was she dreaming?

"I say we should leg it and slip out the back way!" Nori's voice broke into her thoughts. Why was she dreaming about Nori? But no, this was far too real to be a dream.

"I'm not running from anyone, beast or no." Dwalin growled back. Emi stood cautiously and walked over to where the dwarves were huddled, dodging another bee that swooped low over her.

"There is no point in arguing!" Gandalf barked at them. "We will not be able to make it to Mirkwood without his help. Now I will go greet him. Ah, Emi, you as well my dear, come along." The dwarves shot the wizard nervous glances as he put a hand on the hobbit's shoulder and bent lower slightly. In a hushed voice he said, "This will require some delicate handling; we must tread carefully. The last person to have startled him was torn to shreds." Emi's eyes grew wide as she looked at Gandalf, who straightened again. She could not help but notice that she uneasily glanced at the leader of the dwarves for reassurance. He was in conversation with Balin. Emi bit her cheek and turned away quickly. _Stupid! He won't be able to help you. Why would you even think that?_

"Now, do not come out until I give the signal." Gandalf warned the dwarves. "And only come out in pairs… Bombur, it would probably be best if you came alone since you count as two." Bombur looked up at the wizard before nodding in agreement and continuing to munch on a carrot or something of that sort.

"Right wait for the signal." Bofur nodded. "…What's the signal?" the dwarves all turned to Gandalf, but he and the hobbit had already left and were walking up to Beorn.

The man, Beorn, was a hulking figure that towered even above Gandalf. He chopped firewood with a large axe that was about as big as Emi herself. And though he was a rather imposing figure, Emi felt a sense of hominess from him that put her slightly at ease. Although Gandalf's slight coughing from next to her was not helping her nerves. She glanced up at the wizard. He was muttering to himself. Emi gaped slightly.

"You're _nervous_." She stated.

"Nervous?" Gandalf replied. "Preposterous." He didn't sound too sure about it though. The wizard and the hobbit came to a stop a good distance from the large man.

"Good morning!" Gandalf hailed cheerily. Emi watched the man swing his axe up. And down. CHUNK. Swinging up again. And down. CHUNK. And up. She glanced again at the wizard. And down. CHUNK. "Good Morning!" Gandalf said again in a slight sing-songy voice. And up… the man froze. Emi's eyes widened and she immediately ducked behind Gandalf. Beorn turned around to Gandalf.

"Who are you?" he asked in a thick accented voice.

"I am Gandalf." The wizard responded. "Gandalf the Grey."

"Never heard of him." Emi couldn't help but smirk from her hiding spot. _I bet Gandalf isn't used to THAT._

"I'm a wizard." Gandalf explained politely. "Perhaps you've heard of my colleague, Radagast the Brown. He resides in the southern borders of Mirkwood."

"What do you want?" Beorn asked gruffly.

"Well, simply to thank you for your hospitality." Gandalf smiled. "You may have noticed that we took refuge in your lodgings last night." Emi felt Gandalf move. Her cover was blown. She turned her head to look hesitantly at the great tall man. A pair of large brown eyes found her immediately and the man furrowed his brow.

"Who is this little fellow?" Beorn asked nervously.

"Well, this would be Emilie Brandybuck of the Shire." Gandalf introduced her. Emi stepped cautiously out from behind the wizard and gave a small curtsy, as well as she could anyway, her arm was still very immobile.

"She's not a dwarf is she?" Beorn inquired even more nervously.

"Oh no." Gandalf shook his head. "She's a _hobbit_. Good family."

"Why are you here?" Beorn asked again, cutting back to the chance. And Gandalf began to explain. Then, for some reason, Dwalin and Balin came out. Emi looked at them in surprise. Then Oin and Gloin. And Fili and Kili. And Dori and Ori. And Bofur and Nori and Bifur and Bombur all at once because they got tired of waiting.

Emi smacked her head.

"Are there any more of you?" Beorn asked angrily, getting more and more unhappy as the number of dwarves increased. And too answer, Thorin stepped out. And Beorn decided not to rip them all to shreds. Emi was very thankful for that. She was even more thankful when they were given breakfast.

The hobbit wasted no time in filling her plate and her mouth. Though she did take a tiny moment to give a piece of roll to the little white mice running around on the table. She did so when Beorn's back was turned. She wasn't sure he would appreciate it.

"So, you are the one they call Oakenshield. Tell me, why is Azog the Defiler hunting you?" the bear man's gruff voice rumbled as he poured a cascade of milk into Fili's mug.

"You know of Azog? How?" Thorin demanded.

"My people were the first to live in the mountains, before the orcs came down from the north. The Defiler killed most of my family, but some he enslaved." Emi's eyes glimpsed metal cuffs on the tall man's wrists. "Not for work, you understand, but for sport. Caging skin-changers and torturing them seemed to amuse him."

"There are others like you?" Emi spoke up, pausing from her rapid eating.

"Once there were many." Beorn responded.

"And… now?" The hobbit frowned.

"Now there is only one."

"Oh…" the silence hung heavily in the air.

"You need to reach the mountain before the last days of autumn?" Beorn asked after a moment.

"Before Durin's day falls, yes." Gandalf replied.

"You are running out of time." Beorn commented.

"Which is why we must go through Mirkwood."

"A darkness lies upon that forest. Fell things creep beneath those trees. There is an alliance between the orcs of Moria and the necromancer of Dol Guldur. I would not venture there except in great need." _Does a quest to kill a sleeping dragon and regain a lost kingdom count as a great need?_ Emi found herself wondering as she bit into another roll.

"We will take the Elven Road. That path is safe." Gandalf replied to the bear man.

"Safe?" Beorn replied. "The Wood-elves of Mirkwood are not like their kin. They're less wise and more dangerous." Emi swallowed. "But it matters not."

"What do you mean?" Thorin demanded.

"These lands are crawling with Orcs. Their numbers are growing, and you are on foot. You will never reach the forest alive." Thorin took a step back in shock.

"Well we must at least try!" Emi heard herself say as she stood up on her chair angrily. All heads turned to her. "We… we've come too far to give up! If there is even a chance… t-then we must take it." the hobbit stammered as no one said anything. At last, she turned to Beorn helplessly. "Is there anything you can do to help us?" The large brown eyes regarded her for a moment.

"I don't like dwarves." The bear man said, gently picking up one of the white mice that Bofur had brushed off of him. "They're greedy and blind, blind to the lives of those they deem lesser than their own." He glanced over at Emi for a moment before turning his gaze back to Thorin. The dwarf lord was gazing back unwaveringly, though he was puffing himself up more than usual to seem not quite so small in comparison. Beorn stared intently at him for a moment before he spoke again. "But I hate orcs more. What do you need?"

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><p><strong>Gah! I'm sorry! Almost nothing happened this chapter! I stayed up really late writing it, and I had noooo ideas. Very sorry. Should be more interesting next chapter.<strong>

**Review if you want to!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hey all! If last chapter didn't make sense. That's because I posted the wrong one. It's fixed now so you can go back and read it.**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>"We need to talk." Thorin looked up slowly from sharpening Orcrist to stare into two large hobbit eyes.<p>

"Indeed?" the dwarf lord raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. Now."

"About what exactly?"

"You know what."

"Perhaps you could enlighten me?"

"That morning. Atop the Carrock." Emi fought down the blush that threatened to blow her stern composure. Thorin's face grew serious immediately.

"Where is the rest of the company?" he asked.

"Beorn is leading them to a stream to bath."

"You didn't join them?"

"How _could_ I?"

"Perhaps I shall instead." Thorin said, moving to get up. But Emi pushed him back down on the stone step.

"No." She said firmly. "You and I are going to discuss this once and for all."

"Is that an order?" Thorin shifted his head slightly in a slight jesting manner.

"Yes." Emi replied in a very unjesting manner. "Now talk." The two stared stubbornly into each other's eyes until, at last, Thorin let out a frustrated sigh and looked down.

"It was a mistake." He relented. The stubborn firmness disappeared from the hobbit quickly. "A slip of the moment, my mind was not my own at the time."

"So… you don't have any feelings… for…me?" Emi spoke quietly.

"None but that of a travelling companion." Thorin shook his head.

"Oh." Came the short reply.

"I apologize for my inappropriate behavior." The dwarf lord tilted his head forward slightly.

"No, no it's fine. W-well, I mean, it's understandable! Not that I…" Emi stopped and looked at the dwarf king for a moment before turning away. "Well! I'll just let you get back to your business then… Sorry to be a bother." And she dashed out the bear's house, almost knocking over the returning dwarves as she went.

"What did you do?" Balin asked immediately, walking over to Thorin.

"Nothing." The other huffed, sliding Orcrist back into its sheath.

"Thorin." Balin said warningly.

"I only informed her that what had happened after the eagles rescued us was a mistake. A momentarily slip." Thorin explained quickly. Balin's eyes widened.

"You don't honestly believe that?" he asked in hushed tones.

"What else could it be Balin?" Thorin turned to his old friend. "She is a hobbit. Not a dwarf. Nothing will ever come of it."

"You can't stop love, laddie." The white haired dwarf shook his head.

"I do not love her!" the room quieted slightly and Thorin looked up wide-eyed to see several of the company casting curious glances at him. He furrowed his brow before turning back to Balin and repeating in a low voice, "I do not love her."

"So you say," Balin sighed. "But Thorin-"

"No." the dwarf lord silenced him. "I know my own feelings Balin. For once, stop trying to meddle." Balin watched as the raven-haired dwarf turned and stalked away out of the house.

Letting out a long sigh, Balin muttered under his breath. "Laddie, you've got no idea what you've gotten yourself into."

"Is something troubling you little rabbit?" Emi looked up in surprise at Beorn's deep voice rumbling from above her. The bear man was standing behind her looking down at her cautiously. The hobbit had been hugging her knees tightly to her chest as she forlornly watched a little black ant crawling a long a blade of grass. The tiny bug seemed to be the only thing that was normal sized in the entire garden.

"Troubling me? Oh! Oh no, I'm fine." Emi laughed nervously. "I'm afraid I just made rather a fool of myself is all." The hobbit rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment as she continued to gaze at the tiny ant. "It wasn't very professional at all. And I'm supposed to be a burglar hah! What a joke."

"You are not a burglar?" Beorn asked.

"No! I've never stolen a thing in my life!" Emi cried.

"Then why are you supposed to be the burglar?"

"Because Gandalf said-"

"Who is this Gandalf to say what you are or are not?" Beorn cut her off gently. Emi looked up in surprise. "If you are not a burglar, than tell me, what are you?"

"I'm…" Emi started "a baker. A reader. An old spinster." She laughed slightly, remembering Hamfast's early morning greeting those many nights ago. "I'm a hobbit." Emi concluded at last. "Just a simple hobbit who made the mistake of stepping out her door." She let out a long sigh. "What am I even doing here I wonder?"

"You do not know?" Beorn asked.

"Not really." Emi admitted. "I guess I wanted a change. Just for a little while. And this adventure has proved to be a little more than I bargained for."

"It is far from over."

"I know." The hobbit nodded. "But what else can I do?"

"You are always welcome here if you wish." Beorn offered. "You seem to care for all things living. They will accept you here."

"Thank you." Emi said, sounding truly honored, "But I don't think I could ever get used to the size of the bees here." Beorn chuckled quietly. "No. I started this quest. I might as well finish it."

"Then come," Beorn beckoned for her. "The others are preparing to leave. Since you choose to join them."

"Yes." Emi sighed, standing. "Back to the wild again. Delightful."

"For someone who has decided to continue, you do not sound very glad of it."

"Just because I _am_ going doesn't mean I have to like it." The hobbit reminded the bear man.

"Very well." Beorn nodded. "Just know that the invitation is always open should you choose to come back this way."

"Thank you." Emi smiled. "I'll definitely remember that."

"Go now while you have the light." The company and ponies trotted out over the plain, Beorn's warning following on the wind. "The hunters are not far behind." Everyone was quiet as they travelled to the edge of Mirkwood. And they were even quieter once they got there.

"The elven gate." Gandalf announced as they dismounted. The wizard wandered into the tree line. "Here lies our path through Mirkwood." He called back.

"No sign of the orcs." Dwalin. "We have luck on our side."

"Set the ponies loose." Gandalf ordered. "Let them return to their master."

"This forest does not seem pleasant." Emi frowned coming to stand next to the wizard. "Is there no other way?"

"Not unless we go two hundred miles north or twice that distance… south." The wizard replied before disappearing into the trees. Emi let out a disappointed sigh and waited quietly as the dwarves unloaded the pony. She had already strapped on her own pack and two bottles in a strange basket type bag. Out of boredom, she slipped her hand into her pocket, spinning the little ring she kept in it. It wasn't much, but it kept her from being completely bored. And she didn't feel like conversing very much with anyone, considering th-

DEATH.

Emi's tensed suddenly. A fiery eye. Fear. It was gone as soon as it came, but it had been there. The hobbit dropped the ring back into her hobbit and started trembling almost unnoticeably. She jumped even higher when Gandalf's voice boomed from the forest.

"Not my horse! I need it." Everyone turned surprise to see the wizard hurrying to his mount.

"You aren't leaving us?" Emi panicked. Not now. Why is he leaving _now_?

"I would not do this unless I had to." Gandalf explained, speaking more to Thorin. The dwarf king motioned for the other to head towards the forest as Gandalf hurried to his horse, Emi following behind still confused. "You've changed, Emilie Brandybuck." The wizard turned to the small hobbit. "You're not the same hobbit who left the shire." It was meant to be reassuring, but Emi paled horribly and burst out loudly.

"I WAS GOING TO TELL YOU!" she gasped, trembling ever so slightly. She shut her mouth for a moment, trying to regain her composure, but the words kept spilling forth. "I… I found something… in the goblin tunnels…"

"Found what?" Gandalf asked. The hobbit's eyes darted around the wizard's face nervously. Gandalf leaned slightly closer, squinting his eyes as if looking for something. "What did you find?" Emi opened her mouth and shut it again, looking slightly pained. She was clearly struggling with something.

"M-my courage." She gasped out at last, pulling her hands quickly from her pockets and holding them at her sides.

"Good." Gandalf said, seeming rather puzzled. "Well, that's good." He repeated, straitening again. Emi smiled nodding in agreement. "You'll need it." the smile dropped completely. "I'll be waiting for you at the overlook, before the slopes of Erebor." Gandalf told Thorin, mounting his horse. "Keep the map and key safe. Do not enter that mountain without me." He glared hard at Thorin. "This is not the Greenwood of old. There is a stream in the woods that carries a dark enchantment. Do not touch the water. Cross only by the stone bridge. The very air of the forest is heavy with illusion. It we seek to enter your mind and lead you astray."

"Lead us astray?" Emi squeaked. "What does that even mean?"

"You must stay on the path." Gandalf continued, turning his horse. "Do not leave it. If you do, you will never find it again." The wizard galloped away calling one last warning. "No matter what may come, stay on the path!" Emi watched hopelessly as the wizard disappeared the way they had come.

"Come on." Thorin spoke to the company. "We must reach the mountain before the sun sets on Durin's Day."

"Durin's Day." Dwalin repeated enthusiastically. "Let's go!"

"This is our one chance to find the hidden door." Thorin nodded, leading the others into the forest. Emi followed closely behind Bifur. _But what happens if we fail?_

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><p><strong>What did you think?<strong>

**I'm ashamed to say I'm loosing steam on this story and I need to get inspired again! So please, reviews help!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Thank you so much for the support! It really means so much! Hope you enjoy Mirkwood! *cue evil laugh***

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><p>Emi had never loved air so much as she did at that moment. That one moment when air seemed all but strangling her. This forest of Mirkwood was like nothing she had ever felt before. And she hoped never to feel the same again. If the forest felt sick from <em>outside<em> the land beneath the trees was far, far worse.

Nothing moved. Nothing pleasant anyway. The air was stagnant; there was not the sound of birds, or even _bugs_ in the air. Only the occasional creak of limb or leaf. A rock crumbling from age down a cliff. A small rustling in the bushes. The quiet was what drove them mad.

It started simple at first. A shadow would move on the edge of your vision. Or you would hear an unearthly cry from the trees far beyond your sight. It was unnerving, but bearable. Then Emi began to notice more. The sounds of the dwarves echoed in strange ways. Her feet were walking backwards… no, that couldn't be right. Were the others seeing this? They must be. How can someone walk backwards and move forwards at the same time? She looked behind her to mention it, and found herself staring at… herself. Hadn't it been Dori just a moment ago? He was nowhere in sight now. Moved awful quickly for someone so old. But then, she wasn't too young herself. She waved at her and turned forward again. Wait.

She looked behind her. It _was_ Dori. But hadn't it just been….

Emi slapped herself roughly. She couldn't be nodding off already. They'd only been walking for a few hours yet! Or was it days? Maybe minutes? It was so hard to keep track of time. She was so tired.

"This way." A dwarf's voice called from ahead. Which way? Oh. Bugger it all. I'll just follow Bombur. He knows where he's headed. Or was that Bofur? They looked so similar after all. But that made sense. They _were_ brothers. Right…

"Air. I need air." The dwarf in front of her gasped. Bombur…. Bofur…. Bifur?... The one with the hat.

"My head," another dwarf. An old one. "It's spinning." The ointment one. That was it.

"Emi! Look out!" Someone grabbed her from behind and pulled her backwards. The hobbit scrambled around for a moment before finding her balance and looking around in alarm. There was a river across the path. She had almost walked into it.

"Where's the bridge?" someone asked. Emi looked around tiredly. Oh. There it was. Or used to be, at any rate.

"We could try and swim it."

"No. Don't touch the water." Emi turned in surprise. Thorin's voice. It was strange and echoing. But, she knew it was Thorin's. It was… cleansing somehow. "Remember what Gandalf said? This River is enchanted."

"Doesn't look very enchanting to me." Bofur frowned looking over into the murky water. Emi smiled to herself as she looked into the river. She knew it was Bofur. It was easier to focus now. For some reason. She didn't know why.

"Hey look over here!" Kili's voice sounded from somewhere behind her. "We can probably get across this way."

"No wait," Thorin stopped him. "We send the lightest across first." _Hmm, good plan_. Emi nodded to herself. I wonder which of the dwarves is the lightest? They're all pretty heav…y…. oh. She turned around to see all of the dwarves looking at her. Oh.

Grab. Swing. Wobble. Move to the next vine. Swing. Wheeeeeeeee. No stop. Focus! Right. Grab. Move. Jump. Grab. Opps… Uhoh. Phew. Safe. Kind of. Water. It's sparkly. Kind of murky, but charming up close. Need sleep. Sleep? Up close? No focus Emi! Focus! You can't fall asleep now.

Emi shook her head to clear it. This forest really was starting to get to her. Heaving her strength. She moved cross the rest of the river. She collapsed at last to the other side, panting slightly.

"This…. Is not right… there is something _very_ wrong about this." She muttered to herself, trying to push herself up from the stone step. "Don't go across!" she called to the others. But when her eyes opened, she groaned loudly. All of the other dwarves were already tangled up in the vines, attempting to cross the river. What were they thinking? Those… those… Dwarves! Emi sat back against the stone exhausted. It wasn't her fault if they all fell in and drowned! She had _tried_ to warn them. But had they listened? Nooooo.

The large thudding of boots next to her knocked Emi from her thoughts. She looked up to see Thorin successfully on the other side. Emi wearily climbed to her feet and froze. What was…

A white… stag. Glowing in the dank of the forest. What a pretty thing. What was it doing here? Something moved slowly in the corner of Emi's vision. She looked over to see Thorin slowly raising a notched arrow towards the creature.

"What… are you doingg?" Emi frowned. Her words seemed drawn out and slurred. Emi looked back at the stag, her head tilting to one side. Such a pretty thing. The arrow leapt out of Thorin's bow, flying straight at the stag, which scrambled away quickly, completely untouched by the arrow. "Shouldn't have done that." Emi watched the beautiful thing disappear into the forest. It was a shame to see it go. "It's bad luck."

"I don't believe in luck." Thorin snarled, lowering his bow again. "We make our _own_ luck!"

"That explains it then." Emi turned towards the path again.

"Explains what?" Thorin demanded.

"Why this journey has been so unlucky." The hobbit looked dazedly at the dwarf. "Because you don't believe in luck. You should trust it more. Maybe things would go your way more often…" her focus seemed to drift of for a bit before it snapped over to the river where Bombur had fallen into the water. And he started snoring. The dwarves wearily made a little carrier for him and rolled the large dwarf on. Then they carried him. Along the path.

How long had they been walking?

And walking?

And walking…

Walking…

Walking?

Emi collapsed wearily beside a tree as Dwalin and Thorin tried to find the path ahead. They were bickering. Silly dwarves couldn't make up their minds about where the stupid path was. What's that? White stuff… Looks familiar, but I can't seem to place it. She couldn't place it for the life of her. Her hand reached out tentatively and plucked at it. It made a strange waving sound that seemed to reverberate through the forest some how. Interesting. She plucked it again. Wibble wibble wibble all through the trees. Huh.

"This way!" Thorin shouted, heading off into the darkness. "Quickly, follow me!"

"Where are you going?" Emi stood quickly, stumbling a little at the sudden movement. "Where… where are you going?" She watched the dwarves follow their leader. "No. We need to stay on the pa… We must STAY on the path!" She shouted after them. They ignored her. "Ganda… Gandalf _said_. We _must_ stay… on the… path…" she looked around. Where was the path? Was _she_ on the path? Oh bother it all. "Wait for me!" and Emi stumbled after the dwarves. She didn't want to be alone in here, that's all she knew. These dwarves were better than nothing.

Walking again.

Again.

They were walking before this?

They'd been walking for _ages_. Ages and ages. They were all old now. Must be getting old. _We've been in here for years it seems._ How many days had passed? How could they tell? Not even the sunlight…

"What's happening?" someone asked.

"Keep Moving. Nori, why have we stopped?" Thorin… who was Nori?

"The path… it's disappeared!"

"What's going on?"

"We've lost the path!"

"We lost it quite some time ago." Emi muttered to herself. Though no one paid any notice.

"Find it. All of you look." Thorin sounded desperate. Why was he so worried? He's the one who lost it in the first place. She had _tried_ to warn them. But no one listened to _her_. "Look for the path!"

They couldn't find the path.

Emi knew they wouldn't find it again. Gandalf said they wouldn't. He told them not to leave the path. But dwarves don't listen. They never listen…

They were walking again.

"I don't remember this place." Someone said. "None of it's familiar." _That means we aren't going in circles then. Right? Unless we're going backwards…_

"It's got to be here." _What's got to be where? What are we looking for? Why are we here? Why am _I _here?_

"What hour is it?" _Thorin. Who cares about the hour? It doesn't matter_.

"I don't know." Someone answered. "I don't even know what day it is."

More walking.

Walking.

Walllkkkkkkiiiinnnngggggggggg…

"Look."

"A tobacco pouch. There's dwarves in these woods."

"Dwarves from the Blue Mountains, no less. This is exactly the same as mine!"

"That's because it _is _yours." Emi hissed stomping over to the dwarves. Who knew what their names were any more. "Don't you see? We're going around in _circles_! We are lost!"

"We're not lost." A dwarf snapped at her. "We keep heading east."

"But which way _is_ east? We've lost the sun!" The sun… Emi looked up. Trees. Trunks. Branches. Leaves. And behind that…

"The sun." she whispered. "We have to find… the sun. Up there." She looked around at the others. "We need to…" they wouldn't listen. They don't listen. They're dwarves. She would have to find the sun by herself.

She scrambled sloppily up a slanted tree. Going up. Up. She had to find the sun. She was in the branches. Still going up. Thank goodness hobbits are light. Up. In the leaves now. Up…

The sweet relief of sunshine and fresh air hit Emi like a wave of the most refreshing things she could think of. It was like a cold glass of water after a night of stuffy noses and horrible headaches. It was glorious. Emi took a deep breath, reveling in the sweet smell of leaves and mist blowing down from the mountains. At last, she opened her eyes. The sun was just peeking up from the horizon and… butterflies. Black butterflies filled the sky, flitting around in such beautiful patterns. Emi let out a breathy laugh as she watched. She felt alive again. After so, so long of being trapped in that accursed forest, she was alive. She could breath. She could think. She was back. Right, down to business.

The hobbit peered out over the waves of trees. It went on for a while, but not forever.

"I… I can see a lake!" Emi called out in excitement. "And a river… And the Lonely Mountain! It's so close. We're almost there! I can see it!" Silence was what she got in return. "Are you guys even listening? I said I saw the Lonely Mountain! I know which way to go!" The leaves rustled. Emi gulped. "Hello?" Taking another look at the open sky, Emi took a deep breath and stuck her head back under the leaves. Stillness. "Hello…" Absolutely nothing. Hadn't the dwarves been arguing when she left? She should be able to hear that, even from up here. They hadn't gone on without her, had they? They wouldn't do that… Emi held back a scream as something snagged her feet and she plummeted through the branches. _You have got to be kidding me_.

At last, she caught herself on a branch, hanging onto it with her two hands. When it started to move, she feared it was about to snap under her weight. But then she realized that it was moving sideways. She glanced over to see… eight… eyes. Emi let go in shock as a giant arachnid spat in her face, hissing angrily. She dropped again, this time to be caught by a large, sticky, white web. Oh no. She couldn't free herself as the gigantic spider came rushing at her through the branches. It wrapped its eight legs around the web, spinning it around her. Around and around. Something stabbed her in the side. She couldn't move. She couldn't think. She could only sleep. And sleep she did.

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><p><strong>Mirkwood is always a challenge to write. What do you think? Did I do a decent job with it?<strong>

**Spiders next. :P Not a big fan of them. We'll see how that goes. *shudder***


	22. Chapter 22

**Just a notice. It might be awhile until I post the next chapter. I have to stop crying over the third movie... *bursts into tears again***

**"Please Enjoy!" - Emilie Brandybuck(covering for her idiot emotional author)**

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><p><em>SPIDER! Nononononononono…<em> Emi's thoughts funneled down into a torrent of mayhem as she made out the hulking shape through the filmy stretch of white webbing. She was surprised she could even move at this point. Spider poison had supposedly paralytic effects. Her back skidded over bark again, knocking the little hobbit back to the situation at hand. _I am about to be eaten_. Not that it did much good. If she could only reach her…

A solid thunk sounded as her small sword plunged into the creature's unguarded belly. It let out a shriek before it was more or less dropped over the side of the branch. Emi's eyes widened in horror as she ripped the rest of the webbing off of her. The scuttling of even more of the horrid things filled her ears and was growing louder. Emi glanced around to see several bundles of white cocoons nestled amongst a nest of webbing. Thirteen bundles to be exact. Not that she had time to count. Emi quickly scrambled behind the nearest tree trunk as the sounds drew closer.

She could _feel_ the hairs on the back of her neck prickling as eight long, hairy legs crept up the opposite side. She would have to use _it_. Taking a deep breath, Emi fished the small gold ring out of her pocket. And, taking a quick moment to glare at the thing before slipping it onto her finger.

As soon as she did so, the world around her grayed everything seeming in a constant struggle of trying to float away while remaining grounded to itself. The all too familiar cold wrapped around her body, penetrating it, as whispers of overgrown arachnids crept into her ears.

_"Kiilll theemm. Kiilll theemm."_

_"Eat them now, niiiiiiice and runny."_

_"Their hide is tough. There's good juice inside."_

_"Stick it again! Stick it again! Finish it off!"_

_"Ahh! The meat's alive and kicking!"_

_"Kill them, kill them now. Let us feast."_ Emi paled.

_"Feast feast feast feast feast"_ they chanted hungrily scurrying through the branches and webs. Emi had to do something. She knew that much. But what? It's not like she could go in blade flying. Even if they couldn't see her, one of them would get lucky and _"FEAST" _She whipped around and ducked quickly as on came right through where she had been standing. _"Feast feast feast feast" _If only she could distract them long enough to free the dwarves… Her eyes fell on a loose piece of wood. How lucky was that? The hobbit quickly scooped it up and hurled it off into the trees. All chanting stopped immediately as heads swiveled towards the sound.

_"What is it? What is it? Kill it! Feast! Feast!"_ Emi had to quickly side step to avoid getting run over by the overgrown insect… alright, so technically, not an insect, but- wait… one of the spiders had stayed behind.

_"Fat and juicy. Just a little taste." _But the thing let out a cry of pair as it felt metal bite into its flesh. It spun around hissing, looking for it's attacker, only to get hit again in the face, the leg, the head again. _"Curses! Where is it? Where is it?"_ Emi smirked to herself before slipping off her ring.

"Here!" she grinned. The spider let out an angry scream charging at her. The hobbit wasted no time, however, in plunging her sword into the spider.

_"It stings! Stings!"_ the thing cried before she gave one last thrust and it toppled off of the tree branch, dead as a doornail.

"Sting…" She looked at the tiny sword in her hands. "I like it." she weighted it in her hand once before turning to the dwarves. "Sting."

Emi made quick work of freeing the dwarves, using her newly named Sting to slice through the thick webbing, slowly lowering the dwarves one by one to the ground. She could hear the sound of the company freeing themselves below, then Bofur's anxious call.

"Where's Emi?" he sounded weak and muddled. Most likely from the spider poison. Several dwarves called out as well for the hobbit.

"Don't worry!" Emi called down to them. "I'm up here!" The all turned just in time to see a large spider leap out from nowhere. Emi quickly found herself pinned down by the creature, just barely managing to stab it before it was able to get it's pincers in her. It shriveled up in pain before stilling and dropping off the branch, taking Emi with it. Branches tore at her face as she plummeted to the ground. Even though the spider carcass had absorbed most of the shock, Emi still felt a jolt of fresh pain surge up her arm. So it hadn't healed like she had hoped.

Holding back a curse, she scrambled to her feet, teeth gritting in pain. Without so much as a thought, her hand flew to her pocket, just to make sure it was… where was it? It wasn't in this pocket… or that one… where- oh. There it was. Thank goodness.

She started towards it, then stopped as the leafy forest floor began rising. A paler spider crawled out of a whole and began advancing towards her. And as it walked, it bumped the ring. _Her_ ring.

"How _dare_ you." She hissed before charging. Emi brought Sting down on the thing hitting it again and again every time it moved or shrieked until at last, it stilled completely. She hit it once more for good measure. In the same breath, she bent down and scooped up her ring. "See this? This is _mine_. Got that? _Mine_." She then retreated to the incline as sat down in relief, turning the golden trinket over in her hand.

It was hers. She had found it. This was her ring and no spider or goblin or dwarf or …thing had any claim to it. It was _her_ precious now. Emi chuckled slightly at her own joke. That Gollum character was very odd. Always calling it his precious and all. He didn't deserve it if he could keep track of such a small thing. But _she_ had just lost it too very briefly. But she could defend it. She could keep that _nasty_ little spider… away.

Emi's smile disappeared. The hobbit frowned at the ring before glancing over at the spider. What _used_ to be the spider. Her eyes widened as she saw the pile of… No. She couldn't have done that, could she? She didn't! But who else? There was no one but her around. But why would she do such a horrible thing?

Emi glanced at the ring again.

No.

It made her do it. This tiny thing had made her kill the spider so violently. Why had she gotten so angry? It wasn't like her. It wasn't like her at all. It was changing her. She could tell. That was it then. She would put it in her pocket and never think of it again. And that would be the end of it. Right then. That was that. All was…

The sounds of fighting had ceased.

"Do not think I won't kill you dwarf." A voice sounded. "It would be my pleasure." Emi's eyes widened as she peaked up from the little ravine in which she sat. Over a dozen elves surrounded the dwarves. Bows notched and aimed at the company.

_So much for putting it in my pocket and never thinking of it again._ Emi sighed silently as once more, she slipped the golden ring on her finger. The grayness and cold enveloped her once more.

Oh, there was Kili. Another elf was bringing him in. Emi crept out of the ravine as quietly as she could. The hobbit doubted throwing another branch would distract this lot. She crept forward as close as she dared as the dwarves were subjected to a search. Emi spotted Fili handing over two knives begrudgingly with the rest of the company. Where was Thorin? Gloin listening to the blonde elf insulting his family. Ori was getting his journal taken! Fili was relieved of three more daggers. The two seemingly leaders began discussing something in elvish. Fili opened his jacket, showing no more daggers. The elf searching him proceeded to draw another one from his hood.

The blonde elf was holding Orcrist! Emi moved around to the same side to get a better look. And there was Thorin! He was alive. _Thank goodness_. Emi sighed in relief. She quickly brushed off how unreasonably worried she had been for him.

"Where did you get this?" the Blonde elf demanded.

"It was given to me." Thorin replied levelly. _Well, that's not… entirely true_. Emi noted, but forgot as Orcrist's tip was turned towards Thorin's neck.

"Not just a thief, but a liar as well." The elf sneered before turning away and giving orders to his men. Emi's mouth gaped slightly. Had Thorin really just told a lie? _Well… I guess it wasn't entirely a lie. Lord Elrond did give it back to him after examining it. Which could be perceived as being given it_.

The elves began corralling the dwarves off through the woods in a single file line. Emi hurried to keep up.

"Thorin," Bofur hissed quietly. "Where's Emi?" The hobbit watched in surprise as the Dwarven Lord looked around worriedly. Very worriedly. His gaze passed right over her without recognition. It felt wrong. Emi wanted to call to him, to whisper that she was fine and would figure a way out of this. But she knew she couldn't, for more reason than one.

After travelling far through the forest, the trees began to thin and look more like trees and less like warped goblins. Emi was forced to drop back as the elves took the dwarves over a narrow, railess bridge to a large elaborate door. After all the dwarves were through, the blonde elf instructed the guards to do something, then froze and glanced over the bridge. Emi was worried for a brief second that she might have been discovered, but realized she had no time for that now. She took the opportunity and slipped through the still open gate into the halls of the wood elves. And a good thing she took that chance when she did, for the gate closed right behind the blonde elf.

But the horrid realization struck her. There would be no leaving that way. She was as trapped as the dwarves were. Where was Gandalf when you needed him?

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><p><strong>*pathetic sobbing*<strong>

**"Just a quick reminder that reviews are always appreciated! Just because she's crying doesn't mean she can't read! Maybe if enough of you folks review she'll get over herself and stop using up all my pocket handkerchiefs!" - Emilie Brandybuck.**


	23. Chapter 23

**"Her condition isn't much better. The idiot went to see it again the next day. Please enjoy!" - Emilie Brandybuck**

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><p>It was a maze of root-like bridges stretching between and around a forest of pillars stretching up into the roof of the endless caverns. Thousands of glowing amber lanterns hung from fixtures, illuminating the paths, which were not touched by the wafting rays of sunlight through the stone roof.<p>

Emi, however, got to enjoy none of it. It was nothing but a gray, winding maze of elf-infested pathways. The lanterns brought no light. The serene stillness was lost in the ever-drifting realm that she walked through.

It seemed an impossible task to find the rest of the company in the endless paths. And the elves keen hearing made everything harder. She had almost been discovered many times. But narrowly escaping seemed to have become a skill of hers.

The hobbit held her breath as two elves walked past silently, chatting quietly to each other. Once they were gone, Emi let out a sigh of relief and sunk to the ground, a shadowed wall at her back. She was trembling like a leaf as she sat there. It had felt like days since the gates had last swung shut behind her. Days of gray silence save for the dreadful pounding of her heart hammering away against the inside of her chest. She was shocked the elves had not found her yet; her heartbeat alone could probably be heard all the way from Erebor.

She missed her pipe. And the rest of her home, of course. Her oven, baking fresh bread. Her garden, hopefully Hamfast was tending to her poor daisies in her absence. Her bed, and the goodnight's sleep that came with it.

But she missed her pipe the most. She appeared to have lost it somewhere before Rivendell, when the ponies bolted. The company had lost most of their supplies then. It really was a shame. That had been her favorite pipe too. _I suppose it serves me right, after all. What on earth compelled me to take my favorite pipe? I should have brought along my spare_.

Her eyes drifted closed. Maybe, just maybe she could catch a quick wink of sleep without any elves coming along. Just maybe…

"I would not trust _Thranduil_," Emi's eyes shot open like bowstring. Had she really just heard… "The _great_ king, to honor his word should the end of all days be upon us!" It was! Thorin, his powerful voice echoed around the vast caverns. "_YOU_ LACK ALL HONOR!" _Just keep talking! Please._ "I've seen how you treat your _friends_. We came to you once, starving, homeless, seeking your help, but you turned you _back_." _Where is he? He must be nearby!_ "You turned away from the suffering of MY PEOPLE and the Inferno that destroyed us! IMRID AMRAD URSUL!" _There!_ Emi skidded to a halt at the edge of a railingless path. And there, over a vast cavern, was Thorin.

"Do not speak to me of dragon fire!" A tall, crowned elf swooped at the dwarf lord. Emi strained her ears to hear the sound. But it was too far away. The elf stood again, still speaking. Then he turned, giving a motion to his guards who seized Thorin and began dragging him down the stairs. Emi started forward angrily to stop again before she dropped off the edge. She had to find somewhere over there.

"Stay here if you will, and rot." The elf, Thranduil spoke again, his voice raising as Thorin was dragged further and further away. "A hundred years is a mere blink in the life of an elf. I am patient. I can wait." Emi started rushing down pathways, hoping, praying, that she would not encounter any more elves on her way.

The iron gate of Thorin's cell was slammed roughly shut, echoing through the cavern as the jingle of keys moved away again, the elf who processed them heading lower into the maze of stairs.

"Did he offer you a deal?" Balin asked anxiously from another cell.

"He did." Thorin nodded to himself. "I told him he could go 'Ish kakhfê ai'd dur rugnu!' him and all his kin!" The dwarven yells echoed before disappearing into silence.

"Well… that's it then. A deal was our only hope." Balin sighed disappearing back into the depths of his cell. Thorin walked slowly to the front of his own cell and grasped the bars, peering up into the ground above. Then he whispered, almost to himself.

"Not our only hope."

And this was true. For, after what seemed days of grayness, Emi finally had something going her way. She had found the dwarves, and the keys. Now she just had to find a way out.

But her luck and patience wore thin. And the days stretched on. But the hobbit got no nearer to finding an escape, and much closer to starvation. Everything seemed surreal. It was gray, and quiet, and starving. There was little to see, or hear, it was just empty. And she was soooo hungry. It was only the numerous waterfalls that managed to keep her from dying of thirst. After several days of desperate searching, her hope ran thin. She needed to eat, something, anything.

Emi dozed quietly in a dark corner of the wine cellar. Slipping in and out of consciousness when two elves entered the stairs at the far end. Her moment of peace was gone. Her feet shifted almost silently across the stone floor and she uncurled, in an attempt to forget the gray haze that had become her world.

"We're running out of drink." One elf said to the other. The other sounded rather annoyed.

"These empty barrels should have been sent back to Esgarrouth _hours_ ago." He groaned. "The bargeman will be waiting for them." Empty barrels? Emi slowly stood. How did they get rid of them?

"Say what you like about our ill tempered king, but he has an excellent taste in wine. Come, Elros, try it." There, a lever! And plenty of barrels for all the dwarves.

"I have dwarves in my charge." Emi's attention was turned quickly to the two elves. One had the key ring! How had she not noticed that before?

"They're locked up! Where can they go?" Emi didn't dare breath as the laughing elf took the keys from the others hands and hung them on the wall. It seemed to take forever for the two to finally drink themselves into unconsciousness, but when they did, the keys quickly disappeared and the scuffing of feet sounded all the way up the stairs.

The days passed in unbearable slowness for the dwarves. They sat silently in their cells, every once in awhile calling to the others. They only made noise when elves came to feed them. And then, they spoke only in insults.

Thorin was completely silent. They had spent far to long. And not even a whisper of… the hobbit. Probably eaten by spiders at this point. Her tiny body obscured by thick webbing, hanging limp in the spiders' nest until the bones withered away to nothing. No… mustn't think of that. Think of something else. Anything else.

"I'll wager the sun is on the rise." Bofur commented sadly "It must be nearly dawn."

"We're never going to reach the mountain, are we?" Ori asked to no one in particular. Thorin's head dropped. They weren't. He'd been such a fool. Why… why did he trust that wizard? They should have never gone through Mirkwood. Now they would never make it to the mountain.

"Well not stuck in here, you won't!"

Thorin could not believe his ears, and then his eyes as the exhausted, worn, beaming face off Emi appeared on the other side of the bars. For a moment, he thought he was dreaming, but the jangle of keys as the hobbit moved to the cell door.

"Emi!" Balin cried in joy. The rest of the dwarves started calling as well, asking what was going on and such.

"Quiet! There are still elves around." Emi shushed them. At last she twisted the lock open and hurried off to the next. But before she could go more than a few steps, firm hands turned her back around and warm lips crashed into hers. The life that seemed to flow her was incredible. After the gray chill of the ring's shadow world, the warmth and feeling seemed to just vanish.

Then she realized what had just happened. Thorin had kissed her. Again.

At last, Emi broke off the kiss and took a step back pulling out of Thorin's arms.

"Are you going to do that every time I save your hide?" she frowned.

"Depends on how many times you save me." The dwarf lord replied, a grin of complete relief on his face.

"Thorin…" Emi started, but after a moment of consideration, she shut her mouth again and hurried to open the rest of the cells.

The staircases were quickly filled with rejoicing dwarves, patting each other fondly on the back before hurrying to the stairs leading up.

"The stairs. You first. Ori!"

"No, not that way!" Emi stopped them from another passage. "Come on, follow me." The hobbit did not stop crossing her fingers the entire way through the halls. It was hard enough moving around by herself when she could not be seen. Now there was fourteen visible escapees and thirteen of them where dwarves, which are not, generally, known for their stealth. To her surprise, they did actually make it to the wine cellar without being spotted. Emi froze for only an instant when the two dozing elves stirred momentarily. But once the resumed snoring, she continued forward. "This way." She motioned to the others.

"I don't believe it; we're in the cellars!" Kili hissed from behind her.

"You're supposed to be leading us out!" Bofur stressed. "Not further in!"

"I know what I'm doing!" Emi snapped back.

"Shh!" the hatted dwarf replied walking passed her quietly. Emi clenched her jaw but hurried quickly to the front and ushered them all into the small space between the empty barrels and a wall of wine.

"Everyone, get into the barrels. Now." She whispered.

"Are you mad?" Dwalin growled. "They'll find us!"

"No they won't!" Emi replied, trying to whisper over the voices. It wasn't working. "Please, all of you, you _must_ trust me on this!" No one did. Emi threw up her hands in frustration before looking to Thorin for _some_ sort of help. Thorin searched the hobbit's for a moment before quickly glancing at the dwarves.

"Do as she says!" The dwarves glanced at Thorin before quickly setting about the task of climbing in the barrels. Thorin looked back at Emi to see slight relief come over her features before looking back at him.

"You too." She nodded. Thorin took a deep breath before hurrying over to an empty barrel. It smelled strongly of wine. Emi hurriedly counted the filled barrels, making sure everyone was accounted for before hurrying over to the lever.

"What now?" She turned in surprise to see Bofur sticking his head out, then everyone else following suit. Emi took a deep breath before grasping the lever with both hands.

"Hold your breath." She said simply.

"Hold my breath? What do you mean?" But the dwarf's words were cut off as the ground beneath them began to shift and tilt. And then, they all rolled off one or two at a time, plunging into the icy river below. Thorin came up sputtering as his barrel bobbed over the water, the current pushing it along. The rest of the splashes followed.

"Where's Emi?" He turned around quickly at his nephew's question. The hobbit was nowhere to be seen.

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><p><strong>"Review if you have a few moments! Thank you!" - Emilie Brandybuck<strong>


	24. Chapter 24

**Thank you all for the wonderful amazing reviews! I finally got over my tears (which is good) so Emi can stop writing the before and after notes!**

**"Finally." - Emilie Brandybuck**

**Shut up. Anyway! Please enjoy!**

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><p>Thorin's eyes scanned the calming water as he braced himself on the walls of the river. He looked up at the ceiling. Nothing. There was no Emilie. The hobbit was nowhere to be seen. The eyes of the dwarves turned to him. All held the same question. What should they do? Thorin continued to search. Maybe he had missed her. Maybe she was just under the calming rapids. Maybe…<p>

There was nothing. And his dwarves looked to him. The dwarf lord had to make a decision. Quickly.

Part of Thorin wanted to wait there forever until the little hobbit appeared through the trapped door. Or to find a way out of this accursed barrel and storm back into the elven labyrinth. He would find her. He would save her, even if he died trying.

But what would be the point of that? What would be the point of any of it? She was just a Halfling after all. He could not risk the quest for one life. She had worked so hard to ensure their freedom. Thorin could not just forsake her efforts in that way. He had to carry on to Erebor. And once the mountain was reclaimed, he would rally the dwarven armies and come back for her. That was it. She would not be abandoned. He would return.

"Thorin?" Balin asked, waiting for his king to make a decision. Thorin took a deep breath and opened his mouth. His heart ached to do this, but there was no other option. This was what had to be done. "We carry on…" But as the words began to slip out of his mouth, another sound drowned them out. A terrified scream as something splashed deep into torrent of water below. Nori immediately reached down into the river before, at last, pulling up a soaked sputtering hobbit.

A huge grin washed over Thorin's face. "Well done, Lady Brandybuck." He smirked.

"Guh!" Emi blurbled back, waving for the barrels too keep going. Thorin nodded.

"Come on," he said to the others. "Let's go." And they were off. One dwarf king, with a much lighter heart, leading the way.

Then came the waterfall.

All were knocked practically senseless as the barrels were tossed roughly about through the rapids. Emi did everything in her power to just hold on to the side of Nori's own floatation device.

Water. Hold breath.

Air. Breath.

The trouble was figuring out which was which. And it wasn't always easy considering she was soaked either way.

Then the hobbit felt herself jostled to a stop. She blinked rapidly and looked around like a frightened deer. The barrels were all funneled to a stop by a sturdy Iron Gate built into a wall that stretched over the river. Of course. And, of course, there were elves everywhere. Emi stared wide-eyed at a particularly fierce looking guard only to watch him slump to the ground, an arrow protruding from his back. An orc jumped in its place, snarling fiercely. More exploded from the bushes, charging the elves all along the gates.

"Watch out!" Bofur cried. "Those are orcs!" _Really? I hadn't noticed! Thanks for pointing that out_. Emi rolled her eyes before stabbing one in the neck with Sting. They had to get out of here. Now.

The hobbit took a large gulp of air before diving under the surface of the river. Thankfully, it wasn't too deep in that portion and she would be able to kick of the ground back to the surface for air. For, of course, it's a common known fact that Hobbits cannot swim. Not generally anyway. _She_ couldn't. And that was the important thing at the moment.

Emi hurried as quickly as she could towards the Iron Gate. Maybe they could go underneath? No, it went under the water too. Emi might have been able to squeeze through, but the barrels would never have fit. Emi kicked off the ground as her breath ran out. The next moment she was gasping for air underneath the stone bridge, both hands clinging to the metal bars. She managed to glimpse Thorin staring at her in surprise.

"It's no good." Emi shook her head. "The gate goes all the way too the bottom." The dwarf cursed before looking anxiously back the way they had come. Most of the elves were gone and the orcs had begun to converge on the barrels.

"Kili!" Fili shouted in horror. Thorin's eyes widened as he heard his youngest nephew cry out in pain.

"Kili…" he whispered under his breath. Emi glanced up at Thorin before quickly disappearing under the water again. The dwarf lord took no notice. The hobbit came up, sputtering, at the side of the river by the stone stairs, and pulled herself out of the water. Bofur cried after her as the hobbit dashed up the steps coming to crouch next to Kili. The dwarf had an arrow protruding from his leg. She whirled around frantically, searching for the archer who had fired the arrow. It seemed to be a nasty looking dwarf with a large black bow. It seemed ready to fire another arrow, but now hesitated, seeing as there was a hobbit in between him and his prey.

Another orc, however, was on it's way to fixing that as it crept up the wall behind them. Emi did not turn until she heard the foul creature let out a gurgle of pain and collapse to the ground, dead, with an arrow through its head. Emi turned in shock to see two familiar elves spring out of the bushes, blades and arrows flying with speed and grace.

Just the distraction Emi needed.

"You." She pointed at Kili. "In the barrel, now." The dwarf replied in a pained nod and began inching to the edge of the wall. Emi looked around quickly for the lever, and finally spotted it. It had been right in front of her, how had she not seen it before? The hobbit pulled it down quickly as Kili slipped over the edge.

The creaking of gears sounded as the metal gates swung open. Emi grinned in triumph before following Kili over the edge and back into the icy cold water. Direction was lost as the current pulled her along.

Which way was up? Where were the barrels? She tried to open her eyes to spot them, but bubbles and foam were all that could be seen. Her lungs burned as she tried desperately to break the surface. She needed air. Which way was up again?

The river sure seemed to be darker than it was before. It hurt so much. Maybe, just a small gasp of air. She was under water… but… it was so dark.

Everything was dark.

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><p><strong>Sorry to end at another cliff hanger! ._.<strong>

**Happy Holidays!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey! Another update! *and there was much rejoicing* this one's a bit longer to make up for the double cliff hanger. Sorry about that, it was poor planning on my part. But Thorin needed to develop his character in that moment. So...**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>Young Mariah Falsworth was the fisher's daughter. <em>A<em> fisher's daughter anyway. There were, of course, lots of fishers in Laketown. But the young girl prided herself on being the only Mariah Falsworth in all of Laketown. Well… the only Mariah Falsworth _now_. There used to be another Mariah Falsworth, her grandmother. But she was dead now, so now there was only one.

She was _also_ the only fisher's daughter who got taken for fishing trips out of Laketown. Mariah was _very_ proud about that. She would walk along the banks when she got bored, and find the most interesting things that got washed down river. Interesting twigs, elven trinkets, spider legs, anything.

It was on one of such fishing trips that Mariah came upon what would most likely be the most interesting thing to ever wash up on the shore of the lake. It was a person. Mariah brushed a dirty brown lock out of her eyes as she hurried to take a closer look. Her hair may have once been blonde, but it was so covered in dirt and fish oils that you could never tell for sure.

It seemed to be a short person. Perhaps a child? _A woman!_ Mariah discovered as she flipped over the body. _Seems a bit younger than mum. But much prettier._ The young girl appraised. A pudgy hand reached out and grabbed one of the soaked, dark brown locks, pulling it close to the her eyes. It was rather pretty. Mariah dropped the hair and put one ear to the woman's chest. She had seen someone do this before. Wonder why? Oh… her heart was still beating!

"DA!" Mariah shouted. "DA, COME QUICK!"

"What is it?" her father's gruff voice replied in panic, fearing the attack of some wild animal, or worse, orcs. The fisher grabbed his rough axe and hurried over the rocky crest to where his daughter had last disappeared too.

"Look! Da, she's still alive! But she ain't breathing. What's wrong with her da? Why's she so short?"

"Back away darling," her father said, pulling his daughter from the woman's motionless form. "It's dead already."

"But I'm _telling_ you, she's not!" Mariah protested. "Look!" she yanked herself away from her father and nudged the motionless body with her foot. Only to let out a scream when woman burst into life, coughing and hacking like you wouldn't believe. The man and his daughter watched wide eyed as the short woman rolled onto her stomach and continued to cough out more and more water in a seemingly endless stream.

At last, once it seemed the entire river must have emptied from her lungs, the woman shakily looked up. Her eyes met the end of a handmade axe that was being pointed at her. At the other end were Mariah and her father.

"What are you?" the man demanded, clearly terrified. The woman blinked rapidly, trying to get her thoughts to stop swimming around and focus.

"Uh… uh Emilie… Brandybuck. At your serv- ah… Pleasure to meet you." She coughed out, trying to sit up and failing.

"But, _what_ are _you_?" The man asked again.

"I'm… I'm a hobbit." Emi managed to get out.

"A what?"

"Oh! Da, maybe it's like a rabbit!" Mariah gasped, turning excitedly to the woman. "Are you a rabbit lady, miss?" Emi blinked back in reply. What was with all these people thinking she was rabbits and ferrets and squirrels and such? It was completely unreasonable. And she opened her mouth to give the girl a piece of her mind on the subject, then paused, considered her options, and shut her mouth again. She really wasn't in any position to be making enemies. Emi knew she was in quite the fix. Where were those confounded dwarves anyway?

"Yes." Emi replied at last. "Yes, I am." Mariah squealed in delight. "And I'm quite far from home as well. I seem to have misplaced my dwarves along the way, I don't suppose you've seen them?"

"Can't say _I_ have." The man replied warily, seeming to relax a bit. "But I heard some talk about a group of 'em arriving in Laketown not past midday!" Emi could have cried out in joy, sprung up and ran around in circles shouting and praising whatever Valar was responsible for her amazing good fortune. But she was tired. And in pain. And didn't want to scare off these rather cautious seeming people. So she just smiled in relief.

"You have no idea how glad I am to hear that." Emi grinned, trying to get up again. She just managed to stumble to her feet. "I don't suppose… you could give me a lift back to this… Laketown as you called it?"

"Well…" the man frowned. "_I_ wouldn't mind it. Ain't no trouble to give you a lift… but the Master's got a iron grip on Laketown and it would be impossible to get you passed the toll gate without some type of conundrum."

"If it's a matter of being seen…" Emi replied, subconsciously fiddling with the gold ring that by some miracle was still in her pocket. "I think I'll be able to manage."

The boat ride to Laketown smelled heavily of fish. Being a fisherman, Mr. Falsworth had a boat… full of fish. And it smelled like fish. Naturally. Not that Emi _minded_ the smell of fish too terribly much. But it was very fishy. And she was very hungry. And after a while it became hard to disguise the sounds of her stomach rumbling hungrily.

Mariah chatted excitedly the whole time, not a bit wary of the stranger she had, as Mariah put it, 'heroically pulled from the water'. Though really, Emi had been mostly washed ashore to begin with.

"Will you be staying with us forever?" Mariah asked excitedly. Mr. Falsworth cast an alarmed glance at his young daughter.

"Thank you for the generous invitation, but I'll have to decline." Emi laughed through chattering teeth. Her clothes were thoroughly drenched. As was her hair, and skin, and eyes, and toenails, and fingernails, and… pretty much all of her. And it was cold. It didn't help that there was actually _ice_ floating on the surface of the lake.

When the tiny, fish filled boat finally approached the town, Emi could not help but stare in wonder. She could see now that it was aptly named. For Laketown was, in fact, a Town on a Lake. Though it didn't look too stable. But it was huge.

"We're approaching the toll gate." Mariah announced.

"Hide yourself lass." Mr. Falsworth said, looking around for someplace to put the tiny woman. But when he looked back at her, the hobbit was gone. Mariah was equally confused. "Well…" the man started. "That's a pretty good hiding spot." He could of sworn he heard someone chuckle from thin air.

The tollgate was passed without a hitch. And Emi slipped off the ring as soon as they were around the bend, startling both Mariah, and her father horribly.

"It's a rabbit lady thing." She explained weakly. But her attention was drawn to the changed scenery around her. It was cramped, and dirty, and the buildings towered high and askew in a very hodge podge fashion. _What is this place?_ She asked herself.

Snow fell through the darkness of night, melting into the many torches that were scattered amongst the wooden buildings. It was all to easy to picture the town going up in flames. _You think they'd be more careful with torches around all this wood… I guess it is on a lake though._ Emi thought to herself.

"Seems awful quiet." Mariah commented to her father. A snowflake landed on Emi's nose, causing her to shiver even more. Not because the snowflake was cold, but it reminded her of how cold she actually was.

Then a clamor rose somewhere over the quiet.

"I would see those days return." A voice rose above the rest. She knew that voice. Emi sprung out of the small boat onto the walkway nearby, nearly sending the boat over.

"Sorry." Emi apologized quickly before dashing off into the streets. "I would relight the great forges of the dwarves and send wealth and riches flowing once more from the halls of Erebor!" Cheers erupted in reply. How come she always seemed to find him because he was being so loud?

"Death!" another voice silenced the crowd as Emi neared the cluster of people. "That is what you will bring upon us! Dragon-fire and ruin. If you awaken that beast, it will destroy us all!" Emi squeezed herself into the thick crowd that was now whispering anxiously.

"You can listen to this naysayer." Thorin replied evenly, in an attempt to mask his detest. "But I promise you this; if we succeed, all will share in the wealth of the mountain. You will have enough gold to rebuild Esgaroth ten times over!" The people cheered at this pledge until the weasel man in black spoke up.

"Why should we take your word, eh?" Thorin turned to him. "We don't know nothing about you. Who here can vouch for your character?" There was an obvious silence.

"Me." This was followed by another silence. Slowly, Thorin turned around, eyes wide. Standing, just outside the crowd, was a shivering, drenched, three-foot hobbit with long tangled dark brown locks and a sword strapped to her hip. "I'll vouch for him."

Still, no one spoke as Emi took a few more steps away from the crowd, past the bewildered line of dwarves. Thorin still stood, transfixed, as though he was staring at a ghost. But surely, everyone else could see her too. They were staring straight at her. "I tell you, whoever you may be…" Emi spoke to Alfrid. "I have traveled far, through many perils with this company. And I know, that Thorin Oakenshield, will not lie, lest his last breath depend upon it. And if Thorin Oakenshield gives his word, then he _will_ keep it."

As soon as Alfrid looked convinced, Emi smiled slightly and took a step back, but not before glancing briefly at Thorin. The hobbit's forced smile disappeared as she looked at the face Thorin wore. It was unreadable. She had not an inkling of what it might mean. But… it didn't seem angry. Quite the opposite, in fact.

"All of you!" the naysayer spoke again over the cheering of the crowd. "Listen to me! You must listen! Have you forgotten what happened in Dale?" heads shook slowly. "Have you forgotten those who _died_ in the Firestorm!"

"No!" the crowd replied.

"And for what purpose?" the man continued. "The blind ambition of a mountain king, so riven by greed, he could not see beyond his own desire!" Whatever look had been on Thorin's face was now gone completely, replaced by one of malice as he stared up at the man who had just insulted his grandfather.

"Now, now, we must not, any of us, be too quick to lay blame." The Master interrupted. "Let us not forget that it was Girion, Lord of Dale, _your_ ancestor, who failed to kill the beast!" The crowd roared in agreement with… something, as Thorin turned to Bard in shock.

"It's true sire." Alfrid nodded. "We all know the story. Arrow after arrow he shot, each one missing its mark." The crowd was angry now. Bard looked around in distress before walking closely to Thorin.

"You have no right," he hissed. "No right to enter that mountain!" Thorin stared straight into the man's eyes before leaning over ever so slightly.

"I have to only right." Then he leaned away again and turned to the Master. "I speak to the Master of the men of the Lake. Will you see the prophecy fulfilled? Will you share in the great wealth of our people?" Everyone watched with baited breath. "What say you?" Thorin prompted. Emi could _hear_ the master thinking it all through behind those beady little eyes.

"I say, unto you…" Everyone froze. "Welcome!" The crowd roared their approval. "Welcome and Thrice welcome, King Under the Mountain." Thorin climbed a few steps and turned triumphantly to the cheering crowd as Bard silently slipped away. No one heard Emi sneeze, or see her shivering in the cold, as all headed inside for a feast.

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><p><strong>Welllllllllll? What did you think about that! For once, I actually carried through on a cliffhanger! Go me! ...hm<strong>

**ANYWAY... please review if you have a moment. It's very very encouraging!**


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